


Sunrise From The New Future

by AnaAS



Series: SUNRISE [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Thorne & Rowling
Genre: Angsty Albus, Anxiety, Depression, F/M, Family Drama, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, I love Albus, James is a Cool Brother, Lily is a Sweet Sister, Lots of OCs - Freeform, Multi, Obsession, Obsessive Behavior, Romance, Swearing, everyone is sad
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-17
Updated: 2020-12-16
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:47:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 75,874
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24759559
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnaAS/pseuds/AnaAS
Summary: The fourth-year was a whole new level of hell for Albus. Since the accident at the beginning of the year, Albus knew that he had to change himself for the better. And he did! He and Scorpius weren't the outsider anymore, at least among their peers of the other fourth years Slytherin. But little did everyone knew, Albus hides a grieving condition about himself. And he was determined to hide it until the end of the time. No one can know..Unfortunately, there was a girl that already knew about it. And she was added to Albus's list of "Troublesome things that I'd like to avoid". Little did Albus knew, the said girl already made her mind that Albus would be a part of her life for a long long time.Chapter 16:“And what are you, exactly? A memory? A ghost?” he asked.‘Magic’ she answered with a smile on her face.“Magic…” he whispered, “And you live inside the castle- the whole time?”.‘They told me I shouldn’t leave’ she said, ‘They were cruel’ she whispered.He looked at her and gulped, “Who are they?” he asked.‘The founders’ she shortly answered.
Relationships: Albus Severus Potter/Original Female Character(s), Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley, James Sirius Potter/Original Female Character(s), Original Female Character/Original Male Character, Scorpius Malfoy/Lily Luna Potter
Series: SUNRISE [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1792687
Comments: 28
Kudos: 71





	1. Continuing the Story: Albus Severus Potter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So, the fourth-years didn’t start well for Albus. After the cursed child event, he still kind of awkward with his father and family as a whole. The feeling of being an outsider still linger. But then, he started to take his lesson and class seriously and befriended the other fourth-year Slytherin. But it wasn't enough. Everything wasn't enough to make him feel happy again. 

\--

“I can’t slack off anymore” Albus muttered in front of the mirror. His messy black hair was damp from the morning shower and his eyes were kept shut while he continually muttering,

“Focus Albus, you have to focus”,

“Calm, always try to calm down. Focus, focus, focus”,

“You can do this, it’s for your own good, it’s for-”

“ALBUS!” a loud shout from outside shattered his morning routine for the past month.

“I SWEAR AL, IF YOU DON’T COME OUT, I’LL BLAST THE BLOODY-”

Before his friend finished his sentence, Albus opened the door. Outside, stood one of his dorm mates Xavier Selwyn. His pair of blue eyes stared at him with a judging look. While messing with his own blond hair he said,

“Are you having a wet dream every night? Why you have to get a shower every single damn morning?”

Albus chuckled at his question. After the you-know-what event at the beginning of the year, Albus always gets nightmares. As a result, he could barely open his eyes in the morning, let alone stay awake during the class. Karl Jenkins gave him another nickname; the Squib Slytherin had turned into a Sleeping Squib.

Now, his life experiences had taught Albus that he couldn’t control people’s perceptions over him. And so, he started to force himself to get better at anything. He started to study very hard along with Scorpius. The two of them -according to himself, couldn’t get worse at anything.

He paid attention to the lesson more attentively, practiced the spells like a madman until late at night, reviewed their lesson from their previous years in between classes, and even asking help from others. At first, Scorpius was against the idea, but Albus convinced him until he agreed. And so, one night in the middle of October in the common room, they approached their dorm mates; Xavier, Julian, and Ethan. The three of them looked at Albus and Scorpius with a puzzled look and the two of them just stood awkwardly. The situation lasted for three whole minutes before Julian finally said, “Yeah, sure”.

Now, the five of them had been friends for solid seventeen days.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Xav” Albus said calmly.

“Seriously Al, it’s the beginning of November,” he said while walking into the bathroom.

Albus looked around his dorm. Scorpius was preparing his school belongings into his backpack while Julian Vorhees was on his bed, reading a fiction book. Jonathan -Ethan Accrington was nowhere to be found.

“Ethan already goes to the Great Hall?” Albus asked.

“Yeah, a minute ago. Don’t worry we’ll catch up” Scorpius answered.

“But seriously Al, why do you have a morning shower every day?” Julian asked him.

“It helps keep me awake during class. Also, I read somewhere that a morning shower especially before dawn is good for your health”.

“Oh yeah? define somewhere, please” Julian smirked, looking through his nonsense lie.

“My head and my heart” Albus answered while quickly assembling his school supplies into his backpack. By the time he finished, Xavier came out of the bathroom.

“Alright, let’s get breakfast everyone!” Xavier shouted excitedly.

The four of them head upstairs to the Great Hall and found Ethan eat his breakfast while chatting with Stephanie Snyde.

“Good morning Steph, how are you?” asked Julian.

“Okay, I suppose” she answered shortly.

Albus cursed himself for not knowing his own dorm mates for three years. Within seventeen days, he learned a whole lot of things about his dorm mates. The first fact was Julian had a big crush on Stephanie and too shy to even admitted it. Second, Stephanie was a really passionate and brilliant chaser as well as a very insensitive girl when it came to acknowledging people’s feelings for her. Third, Ethan was the biggest quidditch maniac in their year and a very committed beater. And fourth, whenever Ethan and Stephanie were together, they were definitely talking about quidditch and their House Team.

“Where're the other girls?” Xavier asked.

“Oh, they took breakfast early. Estelle asked Joyce to accompany her to the library and Samantha decided to tag along”

“Library? In the morning? You’ve got to be kidding me”

“Yeah, she wants to exchange the book she borrowed for another one. Don’t want to be crossed by others, she said. Although, I am sure nobody cares about astronomy as passionate as she is”. Stephanie waved her right hand in front of her face lazily.

The four of them began to fill their plate with foods. That morning, Albus chose a sunny side up and two strips of bacon. They started to chat with each other, although Albus was usually quite and commented on something when it’s truly necessary. Scorpius was generally also quiet, but Xavier always gets him to speak. Both of them came from the sacred twenty-eight pureblood families, so Xavier understood Scorpius' situation very well. Xavier’s grandparents, uncles, and aunts were rotting in the Azkaban as they spoke, while Scorpius' grandparents still alive and kind of well, de didn’t have a close relationship with them. Stephanie’s grandparents were dead during their imprisonment for the 1981 event, while some of her aunts, uncles, and distant cousins were arrested for the 1998 event.

Albus didn’t realize the words “you’ll find your true friends” from the sorting hat about Slytherin House in the sorting ceremony four years ago until he befriended his dorm mates some weeks ago. Of course, he understood that he already found a best friend figure in Scorpius. But his mind grew broader each day while spending time with them. Many kids in Slytherin House suffered prejudice for something they didn’t even do. Their ancestor’s sins became their sins in other people’s eyes even after twenty-three years after The Second Wizarding War. The whole house was seen as the public enemy, as the Death Eater spawns who were ready to do dark arts anytime and anywhere. Those prejudices made the kids got closer to each other, bonded them together in hearts and minds. While Albus knew that he was still kind of awkward with all of them, but within his heart, he was sure that these people are the ones who would understand him more than his cousins and family ever did. 

“You coming, Al?” Julian asked. All four of them had risen up from their seat.

“Yeah, certainly” answered Albus.

He didn’t finish his breakfast.

The five of them headed to their first class, Charm. They would start to practice the vanishing charm, which the theory had been covered last week. Albus was kind of nervous that he would fail, again. But he and the others had been practicing the charm last night in their room. They filled glasses with water and tried to vanish the water from the glass. Ethan succeeded in his first try and nailed it through the whole night, Scorpius and Julian shattered the glass once and succeeded after several trials. Xavier shattered the glass twice before nailing it. Albus didn’t shatter his glass, but he just succeeded twice.

 _“And if Professor Flitwick makes us vanish something solid, I am doomed”_ Albus muttered in his mind. 

When they got into the class, Estelle, Joyce, and Samantha already sat in the back corner table and Stephanie immediately joined them. He and Scorpius got the middle back, as all of the front rows were already filled by the Ravenclaws student.

“Good Morning students”

“Good Morning Professor Flitwick”

Professor Flitwick was old. Albus thought he might be at least eighty years old or more. His tiny legs were funny when he walked and Albus always mesmerized by his ability to climb the steps in front of the classroom. After he was settling on top of his giant pile of books, he began the lesson.

“Alright everyone, we all know what we’ll do today. There was a jar of custard in front you and your task is to vanish them until there is none left within the jar. Don’t forget the wand movement and said the spell clearly, _Evanesco_. Ev-an-ES-ko! put a bit of pressure on the ES or you’ll never get it”.

The custard was kind of tricky, there was liquid and solid within it. After a few tries, Albus still couldn’t do anything about it.

“Focus Albus, focus” he murmured slowly to himself. He thought of a silent kitchen, with a sound of small fire from the fireplace, a soft sound of boiling water, the smell of egg and freshly baked bread…

“Evanesco” Albus tried again.

One-third of the custard was gone!

“Ha!” he exclaimed.

“Al, that’s amazing!” Scorpius commented. His jar still full, half of the jar was kind of being separated by liquid stuff.

“Oh please, say it after I vanish the whole custard,” he said.

“Try with all your might then. And you could teach me after that”

“Sure. Let me try it again okay”.

_Focus….focus….focus…_

“Evanesco”

The whole custard did vanish, but the was a crack on the jar.

“ _It’s good,”_ Albus thought.

“That’s amazing. Now give me the tips”

“Don’t laugh, promised?” Albus said with a smile on his face. He felt happy for the result. It was the fastest progress he’s done in charm for the whole four years of his Hogwarts life.

“Why would I laugh?”

“It’s ridiculous.”

“I’ve been friend with you for four years, nothing is ridiculous anymore” Scorpius smiled.

“Okay, umm I thought about the kitchen. Yeah, literally kitchen with all of the stuff around it”

Scorpius looked puzzled “You think of kitchen because it’s custard?”

“No, it’s just kind of make me focus. Think of something that makes you focus” Albus explained.

“I’ll try. Watch me, alright?” he smiled.

“Sure”.

In the afternoon, Albus parted ways with the others. Stephanie, Scorpius, Xavier, and Estelle went for divination, while Samantha, Ethan, and Julian headed for Arithmancy. There was a fundamental reason why Albus chose Ancient Runes; it’s the class with the least Gryffindors in it. It’s not like that he hated them, it’s just that Gryffindors tends to report his failures in somethings to one of his cousins or siblings. It’s bloody embarrassing.

The only person in his year from Slytherin House who took Ancient Runes was Joyce. She was a nice girl, with a pretty face and a pretty heart. The crazy thing was only him and Joyce were the half-bloods in their year. The other seven were all purebloods from old families who had been the resident of Slytherin House for generations. Her mother was a muggle-born from America, while her father was a half-blood who long ago was sorted into Ravenclaw. She had long light brown wavy hair and often tied it into a ponytail. She was the only one nice enough to talk to him during the class -not like many people took the class, to begin with. There were only twelve students including them, most of them were Hefflepuffs.

When he stepped into the room, Joyce wave her hands and Albus took it as a cue to sit with her.

“Hai Albus, essay’s good?” Her soft voice was calm and shooting as usual.

“Yeah, I’ve got it done two days ago. There was some translation that seems off though”

Joyce smiled “Yeah, the last paragraph was a nightmare. I’ve kind of confused between whether The Princess killed and eat her pet to survive or burnt her servant’s clothes to call for help. Both are disturbing though” she said.

“I wasn’t confused about that. I confused whether it’s her pet or her servant she killed to survive”

“And I thought mine was dark enough”

Both of them chuckled over the ridiculous runes’ translation. After the class, both of them headed back to dungeon together while chatting over simple things.

“And so, I said to Estelle that it would be a waste of money to spend so many galleons on a golden telescope. Whether it’s golden, silver, copper, or iron the function would be the same anyway”

“Since when does she obsessed with stars and stuff?” Albus asked

“The beginning of this year, actually. She said that his father told her this romantic story behind her name choice. And since then, it’s like an obligatory for her to know anything about stars and everything that exists in the sky”

“It’s quite funny for me because she doesn’t seem like an outdoor type of girl”

Joyce spun her body into Albus’s direction, “Right?! She actually hates it. Why would-”

BRUKKK

“Oh sorry, I didn’t-” she looked at the person and found a rather familiar red hair.

“Hai Molly” Albus greeted his cousin.

“Emmm Hai Al” Molly answered awkwardly. Nobody said anything for about ten seconds and Albus forced himself to speak something just because Joyce and Molly’s friend eyed him and his cousin confusedly.

“Seems like you are heading from potion”

“I did” she answered shortly.

“Say hello for James and Lily from me”

“Yeah, of course. See you later Albus”

“Sure”

Molly and her friend then rushed towards upstairs, left Albus and Joyce to stare at their back.

“Is it always this bad?” Joyce asked.

“It’s complicated,” Albus said quietly.

“I thought that me being the first one to be sorted into Slytherin for the first time since my great-grandfather was pretty awkward. I forget you are the only person who EVER got sorted into Slytherin in the history of your family. Not to mention that all of your cousins were sorted into the same house”

Albus sighed, remembering how uncomfortable it was being an outcast of the family once again.

**My dear Son,**

**How were your days this week? I hope it was full of joy and happiness.**

**Oh Al, I know that you really are working yourself really hard. But don’t push yourself too hard, okay? The most important to me is that you are always happy. If being a better-skilled wizard is the thing that makes you happy, then go for it.**

**But my standing is clear. I don’t want you to push yourself beyond your comfort zone. I just want you to be always happy and marry, my dearest son.**

**It’s getting cold these days, don’t forget to always warm yourself. Wear your robe, gloves, and scarf properly. Eat a warm soup at dinner and just summon Kreacher for a glass of warm milk before sleep if you want.**

**Don’t forget your promise to stay away from danger, okay?**

**By the way, your father and I decided to let all the three of you choose your own Christmas present. Let me know if you want something big, so we could prepare it before you came home.**

**Love you always,**

**Mom**

The letter warm Albus’s heart in the cold late November. His mother was always there for him, always gentle and strong at the same time, always care for him like nobody ever could. Always love him no matter what happened.

Albus hadn’t thought about Christmas present at all. There was nothing he actually wanted.

“Al, come on! We’ll late for potions if you keep sitting there” Scorpius broke his silence.

“Coming!” He gathered his belonging and headed to his friends in front of the Great Hall.

He didn’t get to finish his lunch.

“If you keep being emo like that, Karl Jenkins is going to call you Brooding Squib in no time,” Ethan said.

“Ugh! Don’t remind me of him” Al sighed. 

“It’s a difficult thing to do, though. We’ll see him and your cousin’s gang in five minutes” Julian commented.

“Not to be rude or anything Al, but your cousin is a nightmare in Arithmancy,” Ethan said.

“Agree”

“Well, she is actually a nightmare in every class” Xavier commented.

Albus couldn’t deny it. Rose and her cronies were always rude to him and his friends. She seemed to have a giant stick up in her butt every time they were in the same room. Last week in DADA, Polly Chapman threw _Quietus_ at Stephanie when she tried to answer a question from Professor Creevey. All of the Gryffindor students laughed when no sound came out of Stephanie's mouth. Rose laughed like there’s no tomorrow.

He understood their reason. Quidditch season was starting and tomorrow was Slytherin against Ravenclaw. The Gryffindor already won last week against Hufflepuff. And as long as the season was going, they will try to torment each other mentally. It was usually targeted directly towards Stephanie and Ethan though, who were in the House Team as chaser and beater respectively.

In the practice session, they paid back. Julian cast a very strong _Stupify_ and Yann Frederick’s _Rennervate_ couldn’t counter it. It was so strong that Frederick’s body flew and hit the window. The glass was cracked. Nobody laughed because everyone could feel Julian’s anger towards the Gryffindor students. It was baffled him; how could Stephanie hadn’t realized Julian’s feelings for her. It was as clear as the fact that the sun sets in the west and rises in the east.

It was four people per table in Potion. The Slytherin girls were sticking together, while for the boys it was usually Julian or Ethan who parted with the rest. There were only nine Slytherin, while there were eighteen Gryffindors. They were literally half the size.

The match was tomorrow, so they tried to stick together with Ethan. For now, it had to be Julian who took the table with the Gryffindors. Albus thought it’s actually alright. For some reason, people didn’t mess up with Julian. Albus had to admit that he was kind of cool too. He had that leader charisma and always act cool and calm outside even if he was angry inside. His appearance also supports his demeanors; with a slick black hair and grey eyes, a lean but steady kind of body shape, and proper height for this body type. His clothes were always tidy and dandy, even his uniform.

Julian’s family moved from Netherland to start a book publishing company around four decades ago. He was the oldest child and the only son of his parents. From the beginning of his life, he was risen to be the person he was today; silent, serious, and lethal.

“Alright, as I promised to you last week, we’ll make Wit-sharpening potion. Anybody willing to recite what are the main ingredients for Wit-Sharpening potion from last week's lesson?” Professor Wegner asked the class.

And of course, Rose’s hand shot up in the air after a split second.

“Yes, Miss Weasley?”

“The ingredients for Wit-Sharpening Potions are ginger root, armadillo bile, and scarab beetles. Sometimes newt spleens are added during the potion making prosses if the potion isn’t acid enough. It was caused by an over amount of armadillo bile, which has basic properties from its juice” Rose explained.

“Excellent. Five points for Gryffindor”

If his mother could grant a wish like a fairy, Albus wanted a better understanding of potion for Christmas present. This subject was a pain for Albus.

 _‘If only I could practice my potion-making ability more consistently than just in class, I am sure I could get better'_ Albus thought.

“Now, prepare your cauldron and ingredient! Read the instruction on page sixty-nine attentively. You can start to make the potion, now!” said Professor Wegner.

Albus prepared his cauldron and ingredients, as well as his book. The book said;

**Wit-Sharpening Potion**

  1. **Mix in ginger root until lime green.**
  2. **Mix Armadillo Bile until blue.**
  3. **Mix Ground Scarab Beetles until red.**
  4. **Remix Armadillo Bile until red liquid is yellow. (Not dark green)**
  5. **Remix Ginger Roots until the brew is lime green.**
  6. **Mix Armadillo Bile until the potion is purple.**



Okay, it seems like trouble because there was no exact measurement. Albus set his fire low and started to put ginger root into the cauldron which filled with water. The root was kind of burnt a bit, so Albus chopped some extra root and added a little piece one by one while continually stirring his cauldron clockwise. After he added his fourth additional small pieces, the root mixture started to turn into green, and gradually into lime green color. Something kicked inside of him and he grabbed his quill to scribed a footnote beside the first instruction,

**1 medium ginger root+ 4 small pieces (around 1 cm each)**

He added the armadillo bile one by one until it became blue. Great! he forgot to ground the Scarab Beetles. He quickly grounded them until it turned into a rough powder and slowly added them to the cauldron. Rather than red, it’s more like a magenta color for Albus. And if that wasn't bad enough, he accidentally stirred his mixture counterclockwise.

_Idiot!_

But then, his mixture turned red! Albus scribed other notes and proceeded to the next steps. He was in his last step when professor Wegner said the time is up and asked them to fill their potion to a glass phial and submitted it to him.

Albus looked at his potion. It was still a dark purple liquid. With an instinct, he then stirred his potion counterclockwise once. The blue-ish color was gone and now his potion was a clear purple.

This was going to be his best potion to date!

He looked up to the others. Scorpius’s phial contains a very dark purple liquid, Xavier’s was still lime green, and Ethan’s was kind of pinkish purple.

“Look like someone get it right” Ethan commented.

“I am just lucky, I guess” Albus humbled.

The next day, everyone is headed to the Quidditch pit to watch the match between Slytherin Vs Ravenclaw. It was cold but the anticipation made the air felt a little warmer. The shouting was loud when the teams flew into the pit. He could saw Stephanie and Ethan formed a formation with the other team members.

“And now it’s time for the captains to shake their hands. I hope Boot doesn’t crush Jefferson’s hand; you look thinner than ever Snake!”. The comment caused an uproar from Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw students.

“Ms. Weasley!” Professor McGonagall’s voice of warning made into the microphone. 

Albus looked up at the commendatory box and saw his cousin Roxanne smirked.

“Sorry Professor, just stating the fact,” she said. “Okay now let’s see. Snyde got the quaffle, she flew straight into the Ravenclaw’s side, passing Bonheur and Freeman. Oh! bluggler is coming everybody! Aaaaand it doesn’t hit her. God damn it Skyver! Point out better next time!”

“And now Snyde shoot! Ten to nil for Slytherin!” The pit was filled with a happy roar from Slytherin House and boos from the others.

The game continued for thirty minutes and his house lead the points ninety to fifty. Ethan was an exceptional beater; he was precise and strong. If it wasn’t for him, Ravenclaws strategy might get Slytherin no chance to win. Ravenclaws passing game was really good, but their beaters weren’t even okay.

“Look! Kimberly Jackson seems to figure out where the snitch already. You go, girl! She flew fast; I bet Jefferson couldn’t catch up. Now they flew to the snitch and Jackson get closer…closer…”

The other players seemed to stop the game already. Now, it’s up to the seekers who was going to win. Albus’s heart fell. It seemed that his house would lose.

“For Dumbledore’s sake! A bludger comes for Jackson. Aaaaah! It hit her right in her hand! Damn it Accrington! You are a really good beater but I really hate you!”. Ethan seemed unbothered by the boos and flew into another side of the pit to seek another bludger and hit them to other Ravenclaw players.

“And now Jefferson flew and… yup! he catches it, everyone. It’s two hundred and ten to seventy, Slytherin wins!”

The Slytherin students roared while the others were booing. Albus didn’t care for once, celebrating the house team's victory made him felt that he was part of them. And frankly, Albus was really happy.

“Ethan was really cool! He is the MVP of our team” exclaimed Xavier on their way back to the castle.

“Stephanie was cool too. She scored six goals” Julian commented.

“She is indeed an exceptional flyer” Scorpius joined the conversation.

Most of the time Albus always remains quite and his friends didn’t bother with that. There were times when he felt out of place and wanted to detached himself from everyone, even his housemates and his families. Even when surrounded by other people, sometimes Albus felt alone and lonely. His heart yearned for freedom and find out who and what he really was. But at the same time, he didn’t want to be alone. He was afraid of being alone and left out while everyone was moving forward. Even Scorpius seemed to get better with the people around him. Their dorm mates really made him comfortable. He still got his ‘Voldermort’s son’ brand, but he didn’t even bother with it. People in Slytherin House were more accepting after he hangs out with Julian, Ethan, and Xavier.

“Albus…”

“AL!” Scorpius yelled.

“What?” Albus asked with a confused face.

“Stop wondering inside your head Brooding Prince, your brother is coming to us,” Julian said.

Truth to be told, James was walking in their direction. His messy black hair was blown by the wind and his brown eyes looked at Albus’s direction. His brother was about half a foot taller than him. His posture was much masculine compared to him and he carried himself with such confident aura surrounded him. Yeah, the pride of the Potter Family of course was a quidditch player as well. He played as a seeker for Gryffindor Team.

“You guys go ahead,” Albus told his friends.

“Are you sure?” Scorpius asked, sounded worried.

“Yeah, I’ll be alright. I am okay with him”

“If you say so. See you in the common room Albus” Scorpius said hesitantly.

The three of them went straight to the castle and in no time, James stood up in front of him.

“Hai Al, that's a very good game from your house,” James said.

“Yeah, that’s a good game” Albus answered shortly without looked at his brother’s eyes. He knew why his James came at him and talked to him.

“How are you this time around?” he asked.

“I am alright James. For the last time, you don’t have to check on me constantly. I know Mom asked you to do this, but I am totally fine. There's nothing wrong with me” Albus answered.

He knew that his parents asked James to check on his condition from time to time. At first, Albus was kind of touched. But this stuff was getting annoying. James made him felt like he was a baby and inferior all over again toward himself. Everything about James made Albus felt small compared to him. He was a better wizard than him, he was really popular, and everything Albus once dreamed of.

“Well, I do it not just because Mom asked me, but because I wanted to. All of us are really worried about you, Albus. With each passing time, I feel that you are distancing yourself more from us”

“I am not distancing myself. I never hang out with you guys because we are in a different house, that’s all”

“Oh, I don’t know Al. It seemed to me you are way quieter than ever before”

“I am always quite James”

“Not always. You didn’t act like this before” James said softly.

“Act like what?”

“Like you don’t want anybody to get closer to you. I know you don’t even bother to know, but I always look at you from afar, Al. Last week you didn’t even eat your dinner for three nights. You just looked at your food and played with it. Some of your friends looked at you warily but they didn’t say anything. You are brooding all the time and seemed like your mind is always somewhere else”

James didn’t understand him. It’s true that sometimes Albus’s mind wanders around. But it’s not like he thought of something dangerous or anything. On the contrary, Albus thought it’s a very normal thing to wander around your head and think of something that you deemed important -or not so important. James made it sound like he was going mad.

“Well, sometimes I just lose my focus. I’ve been working on it”

“Focus? You’ve just been losing focus from time to time?” James asked him as if he didn't believe him.

It made Albus mad.

“Yes! There’s nothing wrong with me! I am perfectly fine and you don’t have to babysit me all the time. Now get out of my way!” Albus pushed James and walked past him. But after about five steps away, James called him again.

“Albus!”

“What?” he turned his body around and facing James once more.

“I just want to say that Lily also worries about you. Two days ago, she saw you sat alone beside the lake. She also told me that you eat your breakfast less and less each and every day. This morning, you just eat one bite of toast, didn’t you?”

“I did? How do you even know that?” he raised one of his eyebrows.

“See? you don’t even realize it. And I’ve told you, Lily worries about you. She observed you closely Al. Our baby sister and I worry sick about you”

Did Albus really do all of that? Silence filled the air again and Albus felt like he was going to threw up. It’s uncomfortable as if he felt pressured to do something. The problem was, he didn’t know what this 'something' was.

“See you later James” Albus bid his goodbye and started to walk to the castle quickly.

He ignored James’s shouting his name and run as fast as he could. After touching the castle floor, he walked and walked and walked without the exact direction. He didn’t want to go back to his dorm. There must be a party in the common room and being around the crowd was the least thing Albus needed right now, so he didn’t go downstairs. Instead, he walked left and turned again and again. Passed through a door then another door. He was definitely below the ground floor, but definitely not the path to the dungeon. But he didn’t care, he kept walked again until he passed through a wooden door and a very dark narrow alley. He didn’t afraid of the dark, he actually liked it. There was another door and he opened it.

For once, he stopped his feet.

He could see the black lake. There was an open corridor with a foyer alongside it. It’s weird, Albus thought. He was sure that it was below the ground floor and he never saw there was an open balcony in this part of the castle when he was outside. He held his arm up to feel the air from the other said of the balcony, and then felt it.

_Magic_

So, there must some kind of illusion and barrier from here that made people from the outside couldn’t see it. Albus turned his head to the left and saw another door. He slowly walked to it and with hesitation, he opened it.

The room was wide enough to be a small classroom. There were two big windows, an empty shelf, and a fireplace on the other side of the room. Albus slowly got into the room and suddenly the fireplace lit up and the candles conjured themselves from the air and ignite themselves up. He noticed there was something above the fireplace and his curiosity kicked in. It was a small dragon statue with amethyst colored eyes. Albus knew that there was maybe some kind of consequences for touching the object, but he touched it anyway.

The dragon’s eyes lit up brightly and Albus instantly jumped. He was ready to run but nothing happened. Instead, the light from the dragon’s amethyst eyes gradually became dreary. Okay, Albus' adventure was enough for today. He walked out of the room and when he opened the door which led to the dark narrow path, it wasn’t so dark anymore. There were tens of candles lit up on both sides of the wall.

This was it. This was what Albus needed.

\--- 


	2. Entering the Story part I: Irene Saito-Rosier

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Everybody, welcome to our new home The Abscondita” her mother said quietly, mesmerize by the whole thing herself.
> 
> “I love magic” Irene murmured.
> 
> Her mother came into her and sat beside her. “There was a reason why those people eyed at us like that. And that’s not going to be the last time people stared at you that way, My Dearest Daughter. A lot of people would do the same or even worse in the future”
> 
> “Why? What have we done?” she asked confusedly.
> 
> “It’s not us. It’s our ancestors” her father answered.

\--

_Irene happily step out of the bus and walked. Her golden robe uniform was hidden from people’s eyes in a layer of a navy-blue leather coat. She let her hair down as the days were getting colder these days. She was finally in front of the Floo Network station of her town. It looked like an abandoned bathhouse for non-magic folks. She walked into the secret rooms where tens of fireplace were lined up._

_“Iwo Jima Eki!” she shouted_

_In split seconds, the usual sight of the island’s Floo Network Station was within Irene’s vision. She stepped out of the fireplace and could see some of the other students there. They walked outside of the building and one of the things Irene loved came to her sight. It was tens of Giant Storm Petrels lined up on both sides of the street. She walked to her favorite bird, Jiji. Jiji was a male bird and pretty young for a giant storm petrel. His grey and white feathers were as soft and as beautiful as ever._

_“Morning Jiji” she touched his beak and the bird happily squeaked PPaaaapp Paaaaaapp._

_“Of course, here is your morning treat” Irene took out some pieces of big honey buns from her satchel._

_“The weather is nice, so let’s fly a little slower today okay?”_

_Paaaaapp PPaaaaaap Paapaapp_

_When Irene was about to hop into its back, she heard something funny._

_“Honey”_

_And she gasped “Jiji, is that you?”_

_“Honey”_

_“Oh my god! Jiji you could speak!”_

_“Honey”_

_“Jiji I love-”_

Honey!!

Irene’s eyes shot opened and her happy dream was shattered to pieces.

“Honey, wake up. We’ve arrived” her mother said happily.

She looked through the window and could see the airport's name below. “Edinburgh?”

“Just a stop” her father answered her.

She straightened her position and turned her head to her father, “You know Tou-san, I looked at the map once. Edinburgh is pretty north to me” Irene said.

The stupid 'moving to Great Britain' plan was got into her nerve from the get-go. How many times did she have to tell them that she didn’t want to leave? Hundreds or maybe thousands! Her father and his family agreed to expand the business farther to Europe. And being the second child of the family, her father had more freedom to go and experimenting with a new market.

So here she was, it’s goodbye Japan and welcome Great Britain.

**Dear passengers, please fasten your seat belt. The plane will be landing in two minutes. I repeat, please fasten your seat belt. The plane will be landing in two minutes. Thank you for flying with Britannica and welcome to Edinburgh.**

“Uaaaaa!! Mama! kowaiiii” her baby brother Taka began to cry, again.

“Suuuuush my baby, it okay. Mama is here” Her mother calmed and hugged him.

As much as she loved her brother, she still would annoy him someday for this one. He just got four years old and hadn't shown any magical ability, so it was too risky for him to take portkey. And here they were, taking a plane as any non-magic people did. 

They got out of the plane and walked to the taxi stops. Taka was held by their mother while she and her father carried the bags. Not that it’s a bother, there were only three of them.

“Tou-san, how about Kiki and Hoshi?” she asked about their family’s house-elves.

“Don’t worry Honey. They are already here, took the portkey last night” her father answered.

They got into the taxi and headed towards Kami-knows-where. She didn’t ask anything about the new house. Her parents just told her that it’s her mother’s great uncle's house and has been home to her mother’s family for hundreds of years. She wasn’t going to lie to herself that she was excited about the prospect of living here. She looked up everything about Scotland after her parents broke up the news. It looks wet, damp, and cold. Sure, nature’s beauty was brilliant, but they also had brilliant scenery in Japan too! Why the hell they had to move? Why the hell SHE had to moved?!

Her robe was finally turned into gold for Emperor’s sake! All that hard work was being wasted.

“Wait? Train station?!” She exclaimed.

“Yeah, it’s more comfortable with a train. We could take a rest and have a meal on board. Oh, come on Honey try to enjoy things here. I am sure you’ll find something you like” her mother said happily.

“Like what is it, exactly?”

“Well, you can start by enjoying taking the train”

“I do enjoy taking a train, Mama. More specifically, a bullet train. A train which could take you from Tokyo to Osaka in two hours and thirty minutes! And surprise, surprise! They don’t have any of them here!”

Her mother sighed, “Honey, just to remain you. I’ve never been in here too. This is the first time for any of us”

“Family sticks together. Remember that young lady?” her father asked her.

“Uuuuh” Irene huffed. 

They got into the train which took them to the north and north and more north. It feels like they would go to the edge of the world. The ride felt so long, mainly because the train was too slow for Irene’s liking. The train was pretty lame for a supposed to be a great kingdom. And it’s also pretty lame that here, she couldn’t use magic outside school! The stupid law made her angrier and angrier toward anything, everything, and everyone!

Around three hours later, the train finally reached their final destination.

“Inverness?”

“Yup,” her mother said.

“So, what are you folks doing in here?” asked the taxi driver.

“Oh, just visiting relatives” her mother answered. If they answered ‘moving’ it would be more confusing. What kind of people was moving to the other part of the world with only three travel bags?

“Huh, so your relatives live in a village huh?”

“Yeah. I hear it’s pretty relaxing to have a village life here” her father answered with a thick Japanese accent.

“For Britons, it is. County life is the best of life, some may say”. Her father and mother kept chatting with the driver. The vehicle went to various directions and crossing bridges several times before reaching their destination.

They waited until the taxi driver was turned and out of sight. Then, they crossed the road away from the village gate and walked into the woods. It was only a narrow path for sometimes, but then it led to a bigger one.

“Mama, are you sure this is the way? We are literally in the middle of the jungle now”

“Suuuush, we’ll be there soon. Hear that?”

“Hear what?”. She stopped and heard it,

-

**the sound of water.**

Several hundred mater away, they stood in front of a narrow canyon with a river below it.

“We are here!” Her mother exclaimed. “Everyone’s ready?”

“For what? Jumping off a cliff?” Irene bantered.

Her father chuckled and ruffled her hair. He held Taka closer as he’s fast asleep in his arms. Her mother, on the other hand, turned her head left and right several times. After a minute more or less, she seemed to find whatever she was looking for. It was a small twig that pointed upward at the end of the cliff. Her mother took out her wand and muttering incantations. After that, she took a small needle from her pocket and pressed it in her pointer finger. A little bit of her blood was then dropped on the twig.

Instantly, from about a hundred meters away towered a giant wall surrounding them. The trees were disappeared and instead, a garden was beginning to form. There were sculptures and a fountain in the middle of the garden. On the right side of the ground, many flowers loomed from the ground; peony, hydrangea, hibiscus, moon flowers, and various colors of roses. The soil path was changing into gravel and in front of her, a bridge was appeared connecting them to the other side of the canyon. Across the bridge, some of the trees were disappeared too. A giant gothic-style manor soared from the ground. Its wall was made from shining black stones. The size was about three times of her old house. And finally, the twig began to change into red and white climbing roses which entwined around the bridge’s arms and created a dome above the bridge. And it didn’t stop there. Its branches crawl through the ground and climbed the manor’s wall until it reached the top of the tower in the middle of it.

“Woooow” the three of them finally breathed.

“Everybody, welcome to our new home The Abscondita” her mother said quietly, mesmerize by the whole thing herself.

“I love magic” Irene murmured.

It took them three days to completely settled. As her mother had predicted, the whole house was still clean. It’s not just a usual cleaning charm, all of them could feel ancient magic within the house. It’s good for Kiki and Hoshi tough, they just had to help them setting their belonging. There were about ten bedrooms and seven bathrooms. Her parents got the biggest one on the center back of the second floor, while her baby brother got the left side one with its own tower. It was so big, even Kiki and Hoshi didn’t have to share a room. Irene chose the large one facing the flower garden. It has its own bathroom, a small sitting room, a small walk-in closet, and a foyer. The bed was a king-size and it was made of feathers. She felt whoever had this room before might be a girl -a very lady-like girl. And frankly, it’s suited Irene’s taste.

Five days letter, Irene and her mother went to the Ministry of Magic to settle some documents. This was sucked, because after that the government would get her trace and sealed her fate for couldn’t do magic outside the school until she was seventeen. Hoshi apparated them into an alley in London. The thing that disgusted her was, the entrance to the British Ministry of Magic was a public toilet. Irene hated this to death.

They got into the **Department of International Magical Cooperation** and talked to the receptionist.

“Good morning,” her mother said.

“Yes, may I help you?” said the receptionist with a smile.

“I have an appointment with Ms. Sinclair from the immigration”

“May I know your name, Mam?”

“Emmeline Saito-Rosier and this is my daughter, Irene”

The receptionist eyed her mother weirdly and then glance at Irene. “Uh-of course Mrs. Rosier. Please wait for a moment”

They sat in the chairs beside the receptionist's desk while waiting the lady scribed something on her papers. The paper transformed into a paper cane then flew inside the office.

“Mama, is it just me or the lady is staring at us weirdly?” Irene asked her mother quietly.

“Suuush, don’t think about it” her mother patted Irene’s hand tried to calm her, which made her even more suspicious rather than calm.

Five minutes later, they were called back and led to an office. This Ms. Sinclair was downright too annoying for Irene’s liking. She asked her mother and her to write faster when they filled some papers. After that, she asked them too many personal questions like about her mother's relationships with her relatives here and how they treated her or how she treated them. How often she sent letters to them and all that stuffs. Her mother being her mother, answered the rude lady with grace and a cool head. Answered the questions only the necessary part.

The Lady didn’t seem satisfied and convinced, but she let it slide. She said that my appointment with the Headmistress of Hogwarts would be scheduled and that I would hear from the school herself. Seemed good for Irene. She didn’t want to meet this person again.

Next, her mother dragged her to downtown London. She liked it, they shopped a whole lot of clothes and accessories. They also visited some gift shops and silverwares. By the time they were done, the sun was about to set.

“Anything you want to eat, Honey?”

“Seafood. I want to eat fish steak” I answered.

They ask the taxi driver where they could get the best seafood in town. The taxi driver dropped them in front of a fancy looking restaurant.

“You sure it’s the best, right?” her mom asked the driver.

“I assure you, Mam. Many fancy ladies like you eat seafood here” the driver answered.

“Let’s see how good it is then. Thank you, Sir” her mother said while paying the driver with non-magic people’s money. Oh, muggle. The wizarding community here called them muggles.

They stepped into the restaurant and a valet immediately offered to take care of their coat and shopping bags.

“Thank you,” Irene said to the valet.

“You’re welcome, Miss. Now please, follow me” he said.

They were led to a table near the corner. At the table beside them was a lady with blazing red hair. There were some freckles adorning her face. She was beautiful and her body form seemed fit, her posture was proper and graceful. She wore a set of a black working suit and currently writing something on her paper. The chair in front of her was unoccupied.

Irene scanned the menu and chose a fish steak and spicy caramelized prawns, while her mother chose stir fry of fish with vegetables.

“Honey, I’ll go to the bathroom for a little while,” said her mother.

“Okay, don’t worry. Take your time”.

Her mother smiled and rose from her chair, headed to the bathroom. Not long after that, a waitress came to the table beside her.

“You order Mam,” the waitress said to the red hair lady.

The lady looked up from her notes, “Thank you. Here, just put it down. Yeah, just place it there. My sister is late” she said while tiding her belongings and put them inside her handbag.

“I am so sorry to make you wait,” said a voice from behind. The woman then sat in front of the red hair lady. She has a very thick brown hair and a slim figure. She wore a pastel green buttoned-up shirt and a white A-line skirt.

“No problem. I ordered you grilled tuna, is that alright?” the red-haired lady said.

“Of course! it’s perfect actually. I’ve been trying to low down my carbo a little bit. It’s getting stuffy here” she pointed out her stomach. “I am glued to my office chair” she added.

“I could only wish. If I try to reduce my calory even a little bit, I am sure I’ll die from exhaustion and stress” the red-haired lady answered, started to eat her fish and chips.

“Oh come on Ginny, what’s happening this time?” said the browned-haired lady who also starting to eat her meal.

“You have no idea, Hermione. My anxiety over Albus is reaching level thirteen out of ten right now” Ginny answered.

“Last time it’s ten out of ten. What is worse than that?” Hermione asked.

“Ugh.. Lily sent a letter last week. She saw Albus barely eat his food. It’s either only a bite of toast or a glass of milk for breakfast. She said sometimes Albus just eyed his food and not eating it”

“Uh no. And?”

“James said he might make Albus upset” Ginny cut her fish harder than necessary.

“Merlin, that boys of yours were complicated” Hermione answered, “To cheer you up, Rose actually said something interesting from her letter yesterday”.

“Oh, what is it?”

“She said that Albus is getting, and I quote ‘smarter at everything. He even answered questions in DADA and the only person who get outstanding on last week potion class’”

Ginny sighed, “I don’t know Hermione. Of course, I am glad that his academic performance is improving. But I knew, all of that happened because he pushed himself too hard. James mentioned that the bags under Al’s eyes were getting apparent and it’s hard to deny that he is getting a lot skinnier now. Two days ago, he sent a letter of wanting a new potion toolset and various ingredients as Christmas gifts. He also wanted to have Harry’s bag”

“Harry’s bag?”

“Yeah, the one with the undetected expansion charm,” she said quietly

_Oh! Oh. They are witches!_

“Will you give it to him?”

“We’ll just make him a new one. And yes, I’ll give everything he wanted. Everything that makes him happy, Hermione. I am desperate right now” Ginny sighed and then drank her water.

“Oh, everything will get better Ginny. I am sure of it”

“After reading Lily’s letter I barely sleep that night. How skinny he is right now? How bad are his eye bags? Is he healthy physically?”

They didn’t talk again for a while. Her mother was coming back from the bathroom and stopped for a moment after looking at the ladies beside us. Their meal came not long after that and they started to eat right away. Her mother didn’t try to make conversation with her and so, she eavesdropped the ladies talking again.

“Have you considering therapy for Albus?” Hermione asked after putting down her eating utensil. Both of them were already finishing their meal.

“Therapy? Like- mental therapy?” Ginny asked back.

“Ehem. I am sure it could be arranged. The Therapist could come to Hogwarts or Albus could leave to St. Mungo on a weekly basis, with special permission” Hermione suggested.

“I’ll…try to talk to Harry. Although I am sure Albus will refuse” Ginny sighed.

“If there is one person in this whole world whom Albus loves without question and hesitation, it’s you. Only you could talk to him from the heart to heart Ginny”

“Yeah, I’ll think about it” Ginny answered.

Not long after that, both of them left the table.

Irene and her mother arrived home at nine o’clock.

“Mamaaaaaaa” Taka screamed right after the front door closed.

“My boooooooy” her mother scooped Taka into her arms after stepped into the family room.

The room was in the center of the first floor, with a giant fireplace and three sets of chairs and couches. Kiki and Hoshi already decorated the entire house with various flowers and pot plants. There were some of her ancestors’ paintings. Almost all of them were nice, there were only four typical pureblood maniacs in the upstairs corridor. But everything is good. This house was awesome if you asked her.

Irene chose to straightly sit on the couch near the fireplace. It’s freaking -bloody cold outside.

“How’s your day, Honey?” her father asked without looking up from the newspaper he read.

**Evening Prophet**

“Exhausting. But everything’s good”. Now that reminds her of something.

“Kiki” she called her house elf. In an instant, Kiki appeared. She was a young house-elf with a blue-ish skin. Her clothes were consisting of a green kimono style dress and a pair of sandals.

“Yes, My Lady?”

“Could you set up hot water for my bath? And I want a glass of warm milk with cinnamon powder before I sleep”

“Oh Kiki, I want a hot bath too!” Her mother said, still playing and giggling with Taka.

“As you wish Mistress, My Lady” she bowed and vanished.

“Irene, do you know the two ladies sat beside us at the restaurant?”

“Oh yes, Mama! They are witches!” Irene answered.

“Yes, they are. But they are not just ordinary witches” her mother said while holding Taka and rocked him in her arms.

“Who are they?” she got curious, now.

“The red-haired lady was Ginny Potter, wife of Harry Potter. He’s like, a super important figure here. And the brown-haired woman’s name is Hermione Weasley. She is the current Minister of Magic” her mother said casually.

“WHAT!” Irene exclaimed. No wonder her mother was kind of mesmerized when she saw them for the first time.

“Funny huh, we run into them the first time we out in town”

“Did you talk to them?” her father asked

“Of course, no. I thought it’s going to be rude for me to just suddenly talk to them. I don’t have any business with them”

“Were they seem nice?” her father asked again.

“Yes, they seemed... decent”

“Let’s hope this Percy Weasley is also nice. I’ll have to deal with him a lot” her father sighed and read his newspaper again.

The ladies mentioned letters from their children, did that mean their children attended Hogwarts too? Also talked about trouble, it remained Irene for something.

“Hai mom, can I ask you something?”

“Yeah?”

“What is it about that rude lady at the ministry?”

“Oh…that. There’s nothing to worry, Honey” her mother sighed.

Her father put down his newspaper and said “What is it about?”

“There was this lady who asked mom many too personal questions about her and her family. She was just downright rude and disgusting. I wanted to slap her face”

“Hmmm” her father hummed “Should we tell her now?” her father asked her mother.

“Tell me what?” Irene asked.

Her mother came into her and sat beside her. “There was a reason why those people eyed at us like that. And that’s not going to be the last time people stared at you that way, My Dearest Daughter. A lot of people would do the same or even worse in the future”.

“Why? What have we done?” she asked confusedly.

“It’s not us. It’s our ancestors- well, your mother's ancestors” her father answered.

“Eheeeem. Well, first you have to know why my father refused to erase his name when I married your father. As maybe you could put two and two together, Rosier is a very ancient family. It’s true! Our family is very old” her mother explained.

“It’s one of the sacred twenty-eight of pureblood line families of Great Britain” her father added.

“What’s so important about that? Your family is also very old too Tou-san” Irene commented.

“That’s why we are compatible with each other. Now, listen to this. My great uncles and cousins made terrible choices in the past. And those events were still fresh in many people’s memories” her mother answered. 

“What did they exactly do?”

Her father and mother stared at each other before telling her the whole story of the first and second wizarding wars.

The hot baths they requested were long forgotten. 

“Good Morning My Lady” Kikis’voice woke Irene up. The house-elf then waved her hand and the curtains were opened.

“Mhmm Uuuhh, why you wake me up Kiki?” Irene asked with a hoarse voice.

“Mistress said so. She said you get a letter” the house-elf answered.

“Letter… what letter?” she asked while still half awake.

“Um…… Your new school letter, Miss”.

“Oooooh, THAT letter” Irene sat up in her bed for a while.

The house-elf was still standing in front of her bed. “Do you need something, Miss?”

“Yeah. Bath after my breakfast. Also, I actually packed Sakura and Wisteria trees seeds. Do you know where are they? I couldn’t find them” she asked Kiki.

“Oh, I’ve planted them in pots inside the greenhouse. I’ll wait until spring to move them into the soil” she answered.

“Oh good. Plant four of the Sakura trees in the entrance path and others in the back garden. Also, plant half of the wisteria in the back garden as well and plant five of them around the front pond. Leave two Sakura trees and one wisteria tree. Pack them when I go to Hogwarts”.

“Certainly Miss. Anything else?”

“No, thank you. That’s all for now. I have to eat my breakfast”

“Of course. The others eat in the back dining room” Kiki informed while walking towards her bed to tidy it up.

Irene walked through the second-floor corridor, walked down through the grand staircase, the family room, and turned right to the small dining room. It was a white painted half hexagonal room with a white wooden round table in the center of it. The big tall windows are in each part of the wall which made the room bright.

“Let’s called it the White Room,” Irene said absentmindedly.

“Oh, good morning Honey. There, your letter” her mother pointed a letter in a side table.

Irene grabbed the letter and sat on one of the unoccupied chairs. Her baby brother got curious and climbed out of his chair and went to her side.

“Nee-chan misete” he said cutely.

“Uh-huh. Please say the English words” Irene teased him.

Taka was still troubled by using full English. He used it only if he wanted to say something short. It’s mixed between English and Japanese if the sentences were long and if he was upset, he went full Japanese.

“Uuuuuh. Big sister, can I look it please?”

“It’s ‘look AT it’. Here, let’s read it together”. Irene made a room for the baby brother to climbed up onto her lap.

She opened the seal and took out the letter “Can you read this one?” she pointed out the small words at the bottom of the school insignia.

“D-di ar-aco Do- ar- mi- en- es Nun-qu-am Titi-la- en-du-es” Taka sighed after that.

He looked so proud of himself.

The other chuckled and her father praised him “So clever, our Taka”.

Irene ruffled his hair and kissed the top of his head “All right, let me read the rest for you okay”

“Okay” Taka answered happily.

“Hm-hm! Dear, Ms. Saito-Rosier. We are pleased to inform you that you’ve been accepted to The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as a transfer student. You will begin to start attending school in the new term, after the Christmas break on 10th January. We expect you to visit our school to settle some things. Please go to Hogsmeade Station at 9:00 am tomorrow to meet our representative. Here is the list of books and things used by the fourth year. Deputy Headmistress, Filius Flitwick”

She looked at the next paper contains a list of books and things used by each subject of the fourth year Hogwarts Students, including the kind of potion-making tools set and standard ingredients a student had to have, the kind of telescope, and other things.

“Mama, it’s tomorrow. Where is Hogsmeade and how we get to it?”

“Oh, don’t worry. Hoshi’s been there, he’ll apparate us.” her mother answered while coating her slices of bread with jam.

“And where I could get all these books and things again?”

“Ask your father. He has gone to various places these days”

“Where is it Tou-san?” asked Irene. Taka was still sat on her lap looking at her letter and try to read it.

“It’s a market called Diagon Alley. There were many markets actually, but that’s the most popular one. It’s in London. We could go there through a pub called The Leaky Cauldron. I’ll get you there if you want”

“Oh, a better idea. How about a family outing tomorrow? After I and you go to Hogwarts, let’s go to this Diagon Alley. We can shop for Christmas too” her mother suggested.

“Sounds cool. How is it Taka? It’s going to be your first outing here” Irene bounced her lap and her brother giggled.

“Coooooool” Taka exclaimed.

Right at nine o’clock on the dot, Hoshi apparated them into the so-called Hogsmeade Station. A man was waiting for them at the entrance.

“Good Morning, Sir. I believe you are the Hogwarts representative” her mother said to the man.

“Yeah, I do. My name is Neville Longbottom, the Herbology Professor of Hogwarts” the man answered.

“Good Morning Mr. Longbottom. My name is Emmeline Saito-Rosier and this is my daughter Irene”.

“Good Morning Professor” she greeted him.

“Good Morning Irene”

“Please, show us the way Professor,” her mother said.

They got onto a carriage and carriage pulled itself toward a huge castle. It’s really big, maybe even bigger than Mahoutokoro. There was a giant lake beside it and gorges surrounding it. Its wall was made of stone bricks and the roofs were pointed as typical medieval gothic architecture. It was covered with early winter snow.

“Wooow” Irene murmured.

“Magnificent, isn’t it?” Professor Longbottom asked.

“Yeah, it has a classic European architecture’s beauty” Irene answered.

“It is, yes” he smiled. “How is your school in Japan?”

“It has an ancient Japanese Himeji Castle kind of style. And it’s at a higher altitude than here, I think”

“Higher altitude?” Professor Longbottom asked.

“It’s on top of a volcano” Her mother answered.

“Uh.. volcano” Professor Longbottom murmured.

They arrived at the castle and it was kind of empty. There were only three people in the main hall -or The Great Hall as Professor Longbottom explained. He said that the students have come back home last night for the Christmas break. Only a small number of students were staying at school.

He led them to an empty corridor with a gargoyle statue at the end of it. Then he said “Fawkes”. After that, the gargoyle statue rose and a circular stair appeared. Professor Longbottom hopped into the staircase, signaled Irene and her mother to do the same. After some time, it stopped and he opened a door at the end of the stair.

The office was big and full of cabinets and paintings. Behind the desk, sat an old woman. She wore a green satin robe and an eyeglass. Her white hair was tied back in a tidy bun.

“Good Morning, Mrs. and Miss. Saito-Rosier. My name Minerva McGonagall, the Headmistress of The Hogwarts School. Please, sit down”

They sat down and she began to talk, “Now, I’ve read the academic report from your old school and it seems that the curriculum was kind of ahead of us. Very ahead of us if I might say. So, I am sure you wouldn’t have any difficulties adjusting. But it’s the optional classes that would be the problems”

“How so Professor?”

“First, we don’t teach Ligilimency and Occlumency here. So, the subject of Maho No.... em...Study of Magical Mind doesn’t exist”

“Oh…” Irene sighed.

She loved that subject. Professor Hamura said that by the end of their sixth year, they should be able to do Ligilimency. One more thing is going to be added in her ‘Disappointments of having to move’ list.

“But the Study of Ancient Civilization was kind of similar to Study of Ancient Runes, I suggest you take it for the optional subject” Professor McGonagall explained

“Yeah, if you think that’s the best”

After some discussion, she ended up choosing Muggle Studies instead of Care for Magical Creature. In her old home, they basically lived among them. Irene knew everything about the muggle, even some of their politics. She concluded that it seemed the magical community here was kind of detached themselves completely from the muggle world. She wondered that her future peers ever take a plane to travel to another country or get online. Would they even know about muggle skincare? 

“Now, the last thing is to determine your house”

“My house?” Irene asked dumbly,

“Yes. You are aware that you’ll live in dorms, aren’t you?” Professor McGonagall asked.

“Ah yes, my mother mentioned it last night. I don’t know that there is a house system though” Irene answered.

“Of course. Let me explain briefly to you then. Here, there are four houses; Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. The names came from the four founders of Hogwarts. Each has its own traits and characteristics. Your house will be like your family to you until you are graduate from here. If you are interested in the whole history of this school, I suggest you read **Hogwarts: A History**. It’s very popular books in this country”.

“So, emm can you explained the houses for me? I still have no idea which one do I have to choose”

Professor McGonagall smiled “You don’t get to choose. The Sorting Hat will choose it for you”

“The what hat?” Irene getting more confused.

“The Sorting Hat. Mr. Longbottom, will you please?”

Professor Longbottom rose from his chair and grabbed a black pointy hat from the top of a cabinet. “This is The Sorting Hat, Irene” he said to her. “You just wear it. And let him decide”.

“That’s right girl! Only I get to decide you and everyone’s houses” he hat exclaimed.

_‘Oh, of course. An enchanted hat.’_

“Come and sit down here Irene” Professor Longbottom said.

Irene rose from the chair and walked to Professor Longbottom. She sat on the stool in front of him. And then, he placed the hat onto her head.

**_Oh… a brilliant, very brilliant mind_ **

Irene sighed as she could hear a voice inside her head. She looked at the adults in front of her, and all of them smiled.

**_Brave and curious, always curious_ **

**_Caring, very caring and loyal_ **

**_But it seems only care and loyal to her own kind and peers_ **

**_Mmmmm ambitious, very ambitious._ **

**_Very very charming to other’s eyes_ **

**_Always eager to proof her own self to others, eager to prove her worth_ **

**_Hmmm crave for acknowledgment,_ **

**_Hmmm you’ll find friends with similar minds in here, certainly_ **

**_You’ll do very well in this house_ **

“SLYTHERIN!” 

\---

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I chose Japan because when I researched the wizarding schools around the world, Mahoutokoro was the most intriguing to me. It has its own system and cultures.  
> Eki means station, Tou-san means father, kowai means scary.  
> I chose the name Irene because of its meaning of 'Pure' and has a rhyme with Emmeline. Still have no idea what's another good name for her father, so it could rhyme with Taka.  
> -  
> Thank you for everyone who read and gave me a Kudo. I wish all of you a good day. :)


	3. Entering the Story part II: Irene Saito-Rosier

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There, walking to their table’s direction was him. The boy whom she met at Diagon alley. The boy who chocked in his own blood. The boy with the most beautiful eyes Irene had ever seen.
> 
> The boy named Albus.

\--

They got into Leaky Cauldron and saw Taka and her father in one of the tables, eating something. Now, Irene wasn’t a spoiled rich brat -at least in her own mind, but the pub wasn’t even okay in her standard. So, they went straight to the back of the pub where her father took out his wand and tapped some bricks. The Diagon Alley was within their sight. It was packed, very crowded with people and stores.

They went to this bookshop recommended by the barmaid of Leaky Cauldron to buy school books called Flourish and Blotts. Irene ended up buying **Hogwarts: A History** as the Headmistress had suggested. They went to Potage's Cauldron Shop where she decided to buy the copper one. They continued their journey to the Apothecary and Scribbulus Writing Instrument. After they got her a golden telescope, star chart, and brass scale in Wiseacre’s Wizarding Equipment, the only thing left to buy were uniforms and robes.

But then Taka wanted to look at the owls, so they parted ways. When she and her mother reached Madam Malkin’s Robe for All Occasion, it was packed with people. They decided to look for another shop and went into Twilfitt and Tatting’s. It was a small but opulent one. Her mother was sitting on a couch reading a magazine while she was being measured.

“So, what’s your house, Dear?” asked the shopkeeper.

“Slytherin” she answered, “I am a Rosier” she added.

“Of course, Miss Rosier” the shopkeeper smiled.

_Wait, she smiled. That’s weird._

“Aren’t you supposed to be disgusted by us?”

The shopkeeper chuckled, “Why would I? Most of our customers come from classy families like yours, Miss”.

After a while, she came with a package containing three sets of uniforms and robes as her mother insisted. “A spare is always necessary,” she said.

“Enjoy your day, Mrs. Rosier, Miss. Rosier” the shopkeeper bid them goodbye.

When they met with her father and brother, they were totally surprised. Taka and her father were holding two cages of owls. One was a mesmerizing brown eagle owl, the other was a cute baby owl which Irene wasn’t sure what type is it.

“Mamaaaa! My owl!” Taka exclaimed while holding the baby owl cage.

“Oouuuh, what’s his name?” asked her mother with a cute voice.

“Kumo!” Taka shouted.

“So cute” her mother commented.

“Tou-chaaaaan, I want a pet too” Irene said while acting as cute as she could.

“Oh Kami, here it comes” her father sighed. “Alright, let’s get back to the shop” he added.

“Who said anything about an owl?" she asked.

And that’s how she got her young Nebelung cat from a shop called Magical Menagerie.

Easy.

Her mother summoned Hoshi to bring back all of the things they’ve bought. Taka almost cried when her father insisted that he let go of his baby owl just for a little while.

“Hey hey, how about we visit that bright happy shop?” her father persuaded Taka.

Taka looked at the ‘bright happy shop’ and smiled widely. “Okay! Don’t worry Kumo, I’ll be back soon” he said to the owl.

Hoshi disapparated with all their pieces of stuff. And now, the third round of the day began: Christmas shopping. They walked to the purple painted shop with a funny-looking mascot. It said;

**‘Weasley Wizard Wheezes’**

_Weasley, huh?_

And Kami! It was packed with people, noises, boxes, shelves, and lots and lots of products on them. Instantly, Taka’s eyes were sparkling and he exclaimed in excitement. He nudged his father to one of the shelves and at that moment, Irene knew that he would cry once they left the shop.

And heaven forbid that she would be there when it happened!

“Mama, can I go alone for a little while? I want to look for some Christmas gifts” she asked her mother.

“Okay. But don’t go too far and be back to Leaky Cauldron by 7” her mother said.

“Promise” Irene held her pinky finger up. Her mother gave her twenty galleons gold.

Irene walked out of the shop and went back to Scribbulus Writing Instrument to buy an elegant pen for her father. The shopkeeper said that it would never run out of ink and could be used to forge other people’s writing. It cost her seven galleons. Next, she went to the Sugarplum Sweet Shop and bought some expensive Switzerland milk chocolate boxes for Kiki and Hoshi. For her mother, she bought a flower arranging tools set from Noltie’s Botanical Novelties.

She was confused about what she should buy for Taka. She wanted something that he could keep so that he would always remember her. After all, she’ll live in a dorm and couldn’t see him until summer. Irene wandered through the street and set her eyes on a bookshop called Whizz Hard Book.

There were small numbers on people inside the shop and Irene sighed in excitement. The children's book section was at the corner of the shop and she browsed through it for solid thirty minutes before settled on **‘Tales of Beedle the Bard’**. She got it to the cashier and paid two galleons.

She still had four galleons left and decided to scan through the shelves again.

“Uhhuuuk”

She heard someone coughed once in a while. That reminded her of how cold it is here compared to her homeland. She looked through another aisle and the coughed was louder.

The person who coughed was a boy who looked like her age. He wore a navy-blue turtleneck sweater, grey button-up cardigan, and a black jean. He layered his lean figure with a knee-length black winter coat.

And not to be rude or anything, Irene thought he seemed forgot to comb his black hair.

_It’s a complete mess._

“Huuk Uhuuk” he coughed quietly again while reading a book. 

Irene scanned the books and this aisle seemed dedicated to potions, plants, and herbs. She might find an interesting flower arrangement book for her mother here.

“Uhuuk huuuuk” he boy coughed again.

Some minutes past and she browsed through the flora focused books. Irene was considering whether she would buy **‘Advanced Guide to Advance Flower Arrangement’** or **‘Exotic Flowers That Wouldn’t Kill You and Its Use’** when the boy’s cough was more frequent and brasher.

“Uhuuuk huuuuk uUhuuuuk”

Irene turned her head toward the boy and looked at the horror. The boy covered his mouth and there was blood soaked through his long lean fingers.

“uhhuuukk Uhhhuuuuuk”

“Hey, are you alright?” Irene got closer to the boy.

But then, the boy ran towards the exit door!

Driven by instinct and adrenaline, Irene followed him out of the shop. He slipped through a small alley beside the shop and ran while coughing like a madman. They got into small enclosure behind the shop when he finally gave in and collapsed to the stoned ground. He coughed and coughed again, but this time without closing his mouth. Blood ran through his mouth and the only thing he did was grabbing his chest.

This is the first time Irene saw something like that. She was stunned for some seconds before braced herself and crouched beside him and patted his back. After some time, his coughs stopped. He looked up to her and that was when Irene saw them. A pair of mesmerizing green eyes.

“Is… it stops?” she asked quietly, “the cough” she added.

“I guess so” he answered with hoarse voice. He rose up and walked frailly to the nearby wall and collapsed once again. He sat and tried to regulate his breath. Irene sat there and just stared at him silently. His high cheeks bones were apparent, his pointy nose and small lips were tainted with blood.

Then, he pulled out a bottle from his pocket. The boy lifted the bottle cap and drank the contain.

Irene got closer to the boy and offered him her water bottle canteen which she took out from her handbag. “Here, you need to drink water too” she said.

“Thank you,” he said weakly while receiving the water canteen.

He drank until it was empty.

“I am sorry” he said after. There was no blood trace left in his mouth

“Don’t worry about it” she said.

The boy closed his eyes and regulated his breath again. While the boy was constantly breathing, she sat silently and just observed him; his hair, his nose, his lips, and his entire face. It’s sad that such a beautiful creature was in an unfortunate situation.

“I hope you go to the hospital after this,” she said softly.

“Yeah… I think so” he answered.

A minute passed and then he stood up. Irene mimicked his movement and they stood up in front of each other. He uplifted his right hand and gave the water canteen back to her.

“Thank you very much” he said without looking at her eyes.

“No problem”

“Emm.., so… yeah. I-I’ll get going now” he walked past her.

_It’s rude of him to just walk away like that._

“Hei!” she called him.

“Yes?” he turned his body to her.

“What’s your name?” she asked.

The boy bit his lips and kept silent for some seconds before answered her question,

“Albus. My name is Albus” the boy answered.

Taka was super happy, Irene could tell. First, it’s Christmas and it means he got presents. Two, his father bought him a ton of firecrackers from the joke shop and Hoshi had been played with him nonstop, igniting the firecrackers whenever Taka wished. Three, his baby owl was with him IN HIS ARMS.

“The owl will die if he keeps doing that” Irene commented while looking at the house-elf and his young master played firecrackers on the other side of the room.

The family room has been fully decorated with Christmas decors and a giant Christmas tree in the middle of it as the main attraction. How did Hoshi and Kiki get it; she didn’t want to know. Kiki had prepared sweets, various cake, and so many kinds of cookies. And her mother has cooked for dinner three hours ago. Her father was sitting in front of her in an armchair while her mother just went to their room. Her new Nebelung cat Michi, nuzzled her side while she was caressing its back.

“He is four, Honey. Give him time to learn” his father said.

“Is it even allowed to sell a baby owl?”

“No, but Taka wanted it. So, I persuade the shopkeeper with eight galleons”

“That’s bribery”

“Doesn’t matter. My son wanted it and I’ll get it for him, whatever the cost” her father said straightforwardly.

“You really spoiling him rotten, Tou-san”

“I spoiled you rotten too, you know” he answered her back.

“Well, I couldn’t deny that” she said defeatedly.

“Now, everyone gathers up! Let’s open the presents!” her mother announced.

“Presents Yeeeeey” Taka shouted while running into them. Hoshi and Kiki also there, joining them.

Kiki gave her hand-knitted gloves while Hoshi gave her a pen case. Taka gave her cute hair clips -he said he bought it with his own money in Diagon Alley.

“Thank you, brother. I love you” she said while hugging and kissing him. He giggled and kissed her back.

“It’s from me for the two of you,” her father said to her and Taka.

Taka was still sitting on her lap when she opened the leather jewelry box. Inside it was two identical golden necklaces with a round locket. The Saito Family crest was adorning the front lid. Irene took one of them and she realized that in the back, it was engraved with words _‘our love was pure'_. Inside the locket was their family photo.

“Tou-saaaaan” Irene exclaimed.

Her father just smiled at her and didn’t say anything.

“And it’s from me, Young Lady” her mother gave her another jewelry box.

Irene opened the box and stunned. Inside it was a bracelet and a brooch. The bracelet’s body was a twisted golden rose branch. And in the middle of it was a golden rose with a small green diamond as its bud. The golden brooch was in the shape of a single rose sprig, complete with its thorn. In the center of the flower crown, there was a small green diamond too.

“Beautiful” Irene was so astonished, she couldn’t speak any more words.

“Up until now, we are always by your side. But from now on, sometimes you’ll leave us in a long time. We just hope that you always remember who you are. Always know what’s important” her mother explained softly.

Irene couldn’t handle it anymore. She hugged her mother, “Thank you. I love you very much Mama” she said

“Oh Honey, I love you too” her mother caressed her back, “I just want you to have a little piece of me, up there in Hogwarts. So, you always remember that I’ll always love you”.

“Me too Me toooooo! I love you too!” Taka exclaimed.

All of them chuckled at him and hugged him instead. It was a perfect night for Irene and she hoped many perfect things would come for her in the near future.

She wore a pink shirt, A-line dark green short skirt, and a pair of thigh-high black socks. Then, covered them with a bright white belted knee-length trench coat and a white newsboy cap. As the shoes, she chose a pair of black low boots. Her Rosier brooch was nicely secured on her left chest.

She wanted her look to say _‘I AM SERIOUS AND I MEAN BUSINESS’_.

Today was her departure to Hogwarts. Around nine-thirty in the morning, they apparated to London then took a taxi to King’s Cross Station. Although, she didn’t find it amusing at all. Her house was in the Scottish Highland, but they had to travel to London so that she could take a train that would take her to a school located in the Scottish Highland. Why the system made her so damn mad?

Her father pushed the trolley with her trunk, cat, and little brother on top of it. Since she didn’t have any boarding experience at all, she packed half of her clothes and shoes. Which was a very large amount. Kiki also packed her trees, her old school textbooks, and notes, her new school textbooks and notes, the other school belongings, her skincare routines, some accessories, her cat treats, and also some cat toys. It’s all set and perfect.

Her father had to cast an expansion and weight reduction charm on her trunk though.

“Now, it’s said platform 9 ¾. We have to walk between…. There!” her mother said pointing out in-between platform nine and platform ten.

“So, who’s first?” her father asked.

All of them look at Irene.

“Ugh! Okay okay…” she sighed and braced herself. She looked at the wall in front of her and started to walk to it. Closer and closer until she touched the wall and could feel magic around it. She went on and walked forward.

She was in the so-called platform nine three quarters right now. It was already packed with people; parents, children, grandparents, and babies. It was crowded and loud in every sense.

The Hogwarts Express was in front of her and for the first time since she stepped on this country, she was impressed. It looked regal with the steam engine and scarlet paint. She got closer to the train and admired it for some time.

She felt her shoulder being tapped and saw all of her family already passed the barrier. Taka’s eyes were sparkling when he saw the train. He climbed out of the trolley and went to her side.

“Nee-chan, are you going to take that?” he asked with excitement, pointed the train.

“I guess so. Do you like it?”

“I do! It’s really cool!” he bounced happily.

“Let’s find a place for you. There isn’t much time” her mother said pointing her watch. It was ten-forty already.

They stopped at the rear of the train. Her father parked the trolley and they chose an empty compartment in the middle of the last car. Her family helped her to get her things to the train and after that, it’s time for a goodbye.

“You’ll be alright, My Dear Daughter,” her father said while hugging her.

“I know it’s not a bullet train, but try to enjoy the ride okay?” her mother was hugging her now.

“Nee-chan, will you come back before dinner?” Taka asked.

Of course, her dear brother made this goodbye even harder. Last night, she read him a story from the book she bought in Diagon Alley. And before Taka succumbed to his sleep, he asked her to read for him every night until they covered all of the stories.

She crouched to his level, “Taka, I am so sorry. I can’t come home tonight” Irene said softly while caressing his hair.

“Oh, will you have a sleepover with your friends?” Taka asked innocently.

“Yeah, Nee-chan will have sleepovers with friends for some times”

“Will you back tomorrow then?”

“Emm no. I will not come back for a long time”

.

.

.

Taka began to catch the situation and instantly cried “You leave me?!” he asked in his cry.

“Oh no, baby brother. It’s not going to be forever. I’ll be back home in summer” she hugged him tightly.

He kept crying “Why do you have to leave?! I want to go with youuu!” he cried.

“Oooh my baby” her mother said softly. She hugged both of them and released Taka after some time. She held him in his arm and caressed his back.

Irene knew it was her cue to get into the train so Taka wouldn’t see her. But before she reached the train door, her father stopped her.

He hugged her once again and whispered into her ears, “Hai, I know it’s kind of cheesy. But remember my message; don’t ever forget who you are. You are our daughter and the future of our family. Work hard and show them what you’ve got” he said in a stern voice.

Irene smirked, “I will Tou-chan, don’t worry. No one can’t break me” she answered.

Her father released her and kiss her on top of her head. She then got into the train and sat in her compartment. Nobody was there, except for her cat. 

“I guess it’s only you and me then” she said to her cat.

The train’s whistle signals its departure and she could saw Taka cried even harder from the window while screaming “Nee-chaaaaaan!”. She waved her hand to her parents and tried to stare at them until she couldn’t see then anymore.

It’s official. Her departure to the boarding school felt real at that moment. She regulated her breath and waved her palm in front of her eyes. Her eyes burnt and some tears slipping through the corner of her eyes. She let herself cried for some moments before reached for the handkerchief in her handbag.

She was just finished weeping her tears away when the door was knocked.

“Can I come in?” the girl asked shyly.

The girl looked like hell, Irene thought.

Okay, that was a kind of exaggeration. She was actually kind of pretty if it wasn’t for the obvious red eyes and nose. Her lips were dry and there was tears trail in the corner of her eyes. The girl had a shoulder-length red ginger hair, an oval-shaped face, and some thin freckles on her cheeks. She wore a crimson winter coat with a white t-shirt underneath and a dark blue jean.

 _She looks… familiar_.

“Yeah, sure” Irene answered.

The girl sat in front of her and eyed her lap. There was another tear about to came out of her eyes. Irene reached her water canteen within her bag and offered it to the girl.

“Drink. You need it” Irene said.

The girl reached it slowly and drank some of the content, “Thank you” she said while handing it back to Irene.

“You’re welcome. I cried too just before you came” she said, “this was the first time I’ll be away from my family for a long time”.

The girl looked puzzled, and Irene continued “I am a transferred student. I never lived in a dorm before”.

“Oh…, where are you come from?”

“The other part of the world,” Irene said, “how about you? Why are you crying?” she asked the girl.

“Em… family problem” she answered shortly.

It was silent after that. But it wasn’t for long, because her cat decided to make an appearance from the top of the compartment’s shelf onto the girl’s lap.

“Meooooow!”

The girl gasped and so was Irene, “Michi!” Irene exclaimed. “I am sorry” Irene said to the girl

The girl chuckled and caressed its back “No problem. She’s really cute” she said.

What’s up with her having a conversation with people before she even knew their name?

“By the way, what’s your name?”

The girl was astonished. Her face was saying something like _‘you don’t know me?’_.

“Um... I am Lily Potter” she answered.

_Oh… THAT family._

“I am Irene Saito-Rosier. Nice to meet you Lily” Irene said casually.

She kind of quite before asked her, “Is that your full name or you have two family names?”.

“The later. My maternal grandfather didn’t want his family name to disappear. So, when my mother married my father, they merged their names”.

“Oh, it’s kind of cool” she commented.

“It is” Irene agreed, “What house are you in Lily?” she asked.

“Oh, Gryffindor”

“I am in Slytherin”

“Of course, you are” she answered instantly.

But then Lily kind of realized something,

“I- I am sorry. It’s eh… it’s kind of rude. I don’t mean it as an insult or anything. I have a brother who was also in Slytherin you know, and I know it’s okay. I am sorry, it’s not that I am prejudice or anything. It just that… I am sorry” she talked fast and nervously.

“Relax Lily, it’s okay. I understand” Irene smiled. It seemed that some people might be trying not to hold any prejudice toward her and her house.

“I am sorry regardless,” she said.

There was a comfortable silence before Irene asked her again, “So, what year are you in?”

“I am a second year. And you are?”

“Fourth”

She smiled weakly, “One of my brothers was in the fourth year too”.

“I’ll meet him often then” Irene smiled.

Then, she pulled out a wet wipe from her bag and gave it to Lily “My mother always says that a lady has to look presentable all the time, even when their heart shattered to pieces. Show to the world how strong and unbreakable we are” Irene said.

Lily smiled and reached it. She wiped her face with it and her pretty face more was apparent. She got a pair of brown doe eyes. “Thank you, for the water and the wipe,” she said.

“No problem. You look pretty now” Irene complimented her.

Lily smiled, “Thanks. You are also really beautiful and your clothes are super nice”

“I spent one hour of choosing it. In the end, my house elf suggested this coat”

Lily smiled again and after that, they talked about various things. Mainly the conversation was about the girl’s things like clothes and stuff. After sometimes, they talked about pets. Lily’s family doesn’t have any other pet except for owls. She has her own snowy owl name, Mr. Padfoot. Her father gave it its name and she liked the sound of it.

They didn’t talk about their family, except about Taka. Irene told Lily about the firecrackers and the baby owl he bought at Diagon Alley. And then Lily told her that her uncle owned the store. She liked the story about Taka’s typical toddler behaviors. Sometimes they laughed after Irene told her an episode of her little brother. Lily laughed and said that maybe she would talk to her uncle and asked him to deliver more firecrackers to Taka.

Irene told her about her life and school in Japan. About the giant storm petrels, her old friends, and the Mahoutokoro castle. Lily then told her about Hogwarts in return, about the corridors, classes, towers, and underground.

She found out that Slytherin’s dormitories were located underground.

After some hours, there was this lady who sold candy and stuff. Lily encouraged her to try many things. Irene ended up bought chocolate frogs, nougats, toffees, and pumpkin pasties. She got Alastor Moody from the chocolate frog card and Lily told her about him.

_He was a Slytherin too!_

The sun was setting and Lily suggested them to change into their robes. Hogwarts uniform and robes were kind of classic which she appreciated. She secured her Rosier brooch in the middle of her chest and prepared her pointy hat.

And before they realized, the train was slowing down. Lily told her that they would go to the castle with a carriage. Irene knew about this and told her about her early visit to Hogwarts.

“Professor Longbottom is a family too. He is my brother’s godfather”

“It seems that everyone was connected to your family, Lily” Irene commented.

Lily smiled and asked her to ride the carriage with her. But she requested them to stay behind for a bit so they could take some of the last carriages. When she asked her why Lily only answered;

“I don’t want to meet everyone right now”

_Oh great, Irene was used as an escaped by a twelve years old girl from her family and friends. Just great! She was supposed to be the schemer one in here for Kami’s sake!_

There were only a bunch of students left in the station and they got into a carriage. There were two other girls who already sat on the carriage. They wore the robes with yellow accents.

Hufflepuffs

The journey to the castle was quiet, but that’s okay because Irene was admiring the castle view. There wasn't any pretty word that does it justice. The snow on the roofs, the lights which illuminated through the windows, the frozen lake, and the whole castle itself was too mesmerizing to look away from. It must be what winter wonderland looks like, Irene thought.

They were in front of the great hall when Lily bid her goodbye and pointed out the Slytherin table for her. The Great Hall was already packed with students sat on each of the house’s table. She bid her goodbye as well and braced herself. Lily then went into the hall to one of the tables and walked to find a seat.

Irene walked into the Great Hall and turned left to the Slytherin table. Many people turned their eyes to her, but she didn’t look back. Some were murmured to others while looking at her, but she didn’t look back. She scanned the table, looked for an empty seat in the middle of the row.

After some time, her eyes locked with a girl. She had straight clean blond hair and a pair of round brown eyes. Irene saw her expression and something within her told her that the girl was from her kind. She had the same composed and proud look in her face.

Irene decided to sit in front of her.

Now, everyone was looking at her. 

“Who are you?” the girl asked her.

Irene extended her arm to the girl, “My name is Irene Saito-Rosier. I am a transferred student. Nice to meet you” she said while looking at her eyes.

The girl smirked, “I am Samantha Burke. Nice to meet you too Irene” she answered.

“Thank you, Samantha” Irene smiled.

_She found her kind._

After that, she suddenly knew four more people; Stephanie Snyde and Jonathan Accrington were from the fourth year, while Bobby Aldrich and Audrey Carson were the fifth years. She sat between Jonathan -Ethan, and Audrey, in front of Samantha and Stephanie.

The Headmistress then gave a welcoming speech that lasted about two minutes before the feast began.

“Woooow” murmured Irene when the meals were starting to appear.

Ethan chuckled, “It’s not like this in your old school?”

“No. We served our own food. We get the tray and then put things we wanted to eat and then after we finished, we clean the tray”

“Sounds troublesome” commented Samantha.

“It’s called teaching manner. Wait until I tell you about my school. I am sorry, but this place is not even worth being a comparison” Irene said smugly.

Samantha chuckled, “Hahaha easy there, newcomer. I was teasing you”.

“I know, but I still don’t want to feel inferior,” Irene said bluntly.

Both of them smiled and they began to chat about their friends. Samantha told them that including her, there will be ten students in the fourth year. She then pointed out their other friends in the table,

“That brunette over there is Joyce Davies, she likes history and old things. The girl who sits beside her is Estelle Auclair. She has a crazy ambition about astronomy and stuff”.

“Joyce is probably the only one who listens to Professor Binn in History of Magic” Stephanie commented.

“Okay next, turned your head right. See that blond guy with freckles? That’s Xavier Selwyn. He is a funny friend. And the guy who sits in front of him is Julian Vorhees. He’s super smart and rich. And I mean like crazy rich. His family owns a publishing company” Samantha explained again.

“He’s crazy about one thing. But sadly, the thing he is crazy about doesn’t realize that he’s crazy about it” Ethan joined the conversation.

Both Samantha and Ethan chuckled, leaving her confused and Stephanie shrugged.

“Is the other blond guy beside Julian also in our year?” Irene asked.

“Yes, he is Scorpius Malfoy. Kind of outsider for the last three years but now he’s okay. And the guy in… oh… Oh… where is he?” Samantha looked confused.

Ethan and Stephanie also turned into Scorpius’s direction. The guy was kind of fidgeting and looked uncomfortable.

“Where is what?” Irene asked.

“Ummmm, there is supposed to be one more guy in our year. Where is he? Is he not coming back?!” Samantha exclaimed.

“I saw him boarded the train. He’s almost late, though” Stephanie answered.

“He sat with us. You two have to see him. He looks…. sick and skinny” Ethan said.

“He always looks like he’s ill. And he is skinny since forever” Stephanie commented.

“Yeah, but now it’s MORE than before. There’s something fundamentally wrong with him”

“Where the hell is he now?” Samantha asked.

“I’ve no idea. We were kind of parted ways after the carriage ride. I thought that he would be with Scorpius, as usual” 

“Who? Where the hell is who?” Irene asked.

“A troubled soul. He’s actually a very kind and nice guy. Very determined and a strong gentle soul. But he is…..” Stephanie didn’t finish her sentence.

“Sick. He is sick and lost. That’s the only thing that could describe his condition” said Ethan.

Look, Irene knew that they were kind of worry about this ‘strong gentle soul’, but they literally hadn’t said his name. So, Irene asked once again;

“Who is this guy again?”

“Him” Samantha nudges her head toward the entrance door.

There, walking to their table’s direction was _him_. The boy whom she met at Diagon alley. The boy who chocked in his own blood. The boy with the most beautiful eyes Irene had ever seen.

The boy named Albus.

His lean body made his figure perfect within the robe. His messy black hair was pointed out everywhere and it gave him a certain charm. His face was serious and composed. The eye bags under his eyes only made him looked so much stronger.

He was a person who would still try to stand up and fight even after being attacked a thousand times. He was a person who would never bend his knee to someone else’s power. He would never succumb to his own weakness, even when it killed him slowly and painfully. 

_He was a strong gentle soul_

Irene shamelessly stared at him while he was walking through the aisle and didn’t turn her eyes away from him when Samantha said;

“He doesn’t look sick. He looks suffered, painfully suffered from death”

“Yup! He looks pretty dead to me” Stephanie commented.

“There he is Irene, our ‘Troubled Soul’. His name is-”

“Albus. His name is Albus” Irene finished Samantha’s sentence.

\--

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next, it’s back to Albus’s story.


	4. Albus: A Disastrous Holiday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> But as Master Albus grew older, Kreacher knew he was more unhappy with each and passing days. He tried so hard to fit into the family and hide his own colors and desires until he couldn’t feel himself anymore. Nobody understood him. And now, all those unhappiness and self-repression destroyed him from inside.
> 
> Kreacher wouldn’t let that happen.

\--

Albus couldn’t think a single time when the universe favored him. Just when he thought that he finally had some kind of luck for finding the hidden room, the feeling was crashed during the Christmas Holiday. To say shortly, it was a complete disaster. And he bought it for himself.

He fought with his brother twice; one for yelling at his sister and one for not leaving him alone. He didn’t want to go to The Burrow during Christmas. ALL of the Weasley families would be there. From uncle Billy, aunt Fleur, Teddy and his grandmother, uncle Charlie, some family friends, and of course ALL of his cousins.

His father said that when he was a teenager, The Burrow was a quarter of its current size. Albus couldn’t imagine how suffocating it was. The house packed and crowded during family gatherings and occasional parties. His mother had a very large family and lots and lots of friends. Most of them were the ministry people. And it didn’t sit well with Albus.

It’s not like he hated being around people or couldn’t handle some kind of communication with other persons. He just hates around TOO MANY people. And his mother’s family gathering was the definition of too many people at the same place at once.

So, when his parents, brother, and sister were getting ready to leave for The Burrow, Albus kept silent in his room. Eventually, his mother came to his room to check why he needed a long time to get ready,

“Albus, why haven’t you got ready? Everyone is waiting downstairs” she asked.

“I am not coming, Mom. I want to stay home” he said while pretend reading a book at his study table.

“Oh……” his mother slowly walked towards him and sat at the edge of his bed,

“But it’s Christmas Al, are you sure you don’t want to come? I helped Grandma Molly cooked yesterday. Guess what? We made a tiramisu cake! Your absolute favorite!” she said with teasing and persuasive voice.

“I am good”

“People want to meet you, Al. I am sure they got tons of presents for you. Uncle Charlie even comes home this year. Imagine what kind of weird present he get for you this year. And if you stay here, you’ll be alone” her mother said softly.

“I am okay being alone. I am waiting for letters from my friends anyway” he kept his eyes glued to his book.

“Oh… you do?”

“Yeah. Scorpius, Xavier, Julian, and others”

“Okay….” There was silence again before she continued,

“If staying here makes you happy. Then that’s it” in a defeated voice.

His mother got up from his bed and walked to his direction. She hugged his shoulder and kiss his head, “Don’t read too close okay? It will hurt your eyes” she said quietly and softly.

“Okay. Got it”

His mother walked toward his room entrance and before she closed his door, she said “Don’t you worry Al, we'll bring you back your presents and I’ll save the whole tiramisu cake. We made it just for you anyway. And if you need anything, just call Kreacher”.

And the door was closed. Leaving Albus felt horrible but also relieved at the same time. He heard some murmuring from downstairs and after some moments later, he heard the floo powder's fire sounds.

He was finally alone.

Slowly, he got up of his chair and went into his father’s study. He browsed through the bookshelves and took out some books about potion; Most Potente Potions, Potions and Poisons, Advanced Potion Making, 1001 Potions That Actually Do Stuff for You, Potion Ingredients Dictionary, and the last was book was more of a spellbook entitled Curses and Hexes: A Guide of Defense and Offense.

Then, he went to his room and took out a small dark green pouch bag from the wardrobe. It was the bag with undetected expansion charm, his Christmas gift. The other night, he already put all of the potion tools set and the ingredients into it.

‘Tools, ingredients, and books are all set’ he thought.

Next, he went down to the basement. His parents kept many old furniture and pieces of stuff. Many of the furniture was still in very fine condition. It was just that her mother preferred anything in leather now. So, Albus thought that he could take some of them to his hidden sanctuary in Hogwarts. There were some minor problems though, their size made it impossible for Albus to single-handedly put them into the bag. And he was kind of worried that it would crush many glasses and jars inside it. It would be good if he could shrink them, but he couldn’t use magic at home.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Oh! Kreacher.

“Kreacher” he called the house elf.

Crack!

“Master Albus” Kreacher greeted him.

“I need you to help me with something”

“Anything, Master” Kreacher smiled.

“Please, shrink that sectional couch, that desk, armchair, and bookshelf,” Albus said.

“Certainly Master” Kreacher answered. Five seconds later, all the things that Albus requested were already packed in his bag.

“Now Kreacher, thank you. But you absolutely can’t tell anyone about this under any command or question. Understand?”

Kreacher was kind of hesitated before saying “Kreacher was requested by Master Harry to report to him of Master Albus activities during their visit to The Burrow”

“Well, now I request you back not to listen to my father’s request for reporting my activities. Will that do?” Albus asked.

Kreacher was confused and so did Albus.

Oh! Crap! He felt that horrible feeling from his lung again.

Oh, Dumbledore!

“But Master Harry requested Kreacher first and Kreacher couldn’t undo his request”

“I—huuuk! I- don’t uhhuuuk told you to huuuuuk undo his--”

UHUUUK HUUUUK UHUUUUUUK!

UHHHHUUUKKK HUUUUUUK!

UHUUKKK UHHHUUUUUK UHHHUUUUK!

His lungs were burnt and he couldn’t think of anything. He collapsed to the floor and blood splatters from his mouth nonstop. He didn’t fight it this time.

No one was…

.

Oh! Kreacher.

Albus looked up to Kreacher and Merlin! The house-elf stood with absolute horror on his face.

“Ma-ma… Master Albus?” Kreacher whispered.

“Ugh….UGGHHH HHaaa- I..am. I-I am okay… Kreacher” he said with absolute pain inside his chest. 

He felt that his eyes were blurring and fought them with his absolute might to stay conscious. 

Kreacher held up his hand and ready to click his fingers and disapparented, but Albus stopped him and grabbed his hand “No Kreacher… you-you can’t do that” he said with a hoarse voice.

“Bu-But Master James asked Kreacher to tell him if something happens to you, Master Albus”

“UUhhhhUUUKK. N-NO! You absolutely can’t do that UHHUUUK!”

His lung was burning.

“But Ma-master, something is wrong with you!”

“UHHUUUKK NO! Ple- Please Kreacher…. No”

“Master Albus, you are sick… Kreacher has to tell Master James!”

Damn James.

“UHHHUUUUK HUUUUUK Kre-Kreacheeeer! NO! I-I com- COMMAND you to not -haahh- tell ANYONE about it. Understand?” He felt that was the longest sentence he could form at that very time.

His lung was burning. 

Kreacher looked defeated, “Master Albus has commanded Kreacher. Kreacher has to oblige him” he said with a gloomy voice. His pointed ears were down and his mouth was closed.

It was kind of harsh for Kreacher, Albus realized it. But hanging out with a lot of pureblood friends seemed to have advantages. Julian said that there were some castes on how to ask something from a house-elf. Asked them, requested them, commanded them, and demanded they would have a different effect on the house-elf obligating their favors. Pretty useful for this situation, he would thank Julian someday.

Albus reached Kreacher’s palms and held them, “I am sorry Kreacher” he sighed heavily “but, I need you to trust me” other pauses of a heavy sigh “I am okay. I could take care of myself”.

“Master Albus…” Kreacher whispered.

Again, he felt that his lung was burnt into ashes.

The fight with James happened at night when his mother asked James to bring his Christmas presents from their relatives. Albus was in his room, opening the presents from Scorpius, Julian, Xavier, and Ethan when James bragged into his room without permission and dumbed all the presents on the edge of his bed.

“That was the last straw, little brother!” James said with a hardened voice.

Albus sighed, “Thanks James for bringing the presents. You could go out of my room now”.

“Oh no, I will not! We will have this conversation whether you like it or not!”

James's chest raised up and down while breathing heavily. He clearly had a lot of surpassed anger right now. “Do you want to know what disaster you caused for this Christmas gathering?!”

“How could I cause a disaster, when I WASN’T EVEN IN the gathering”. Albus sighed and reached the book Julian gave him as the present.

The title was ‘Tales of Great Wizards of Great Britain’s Great Pureblood Houses’. There was a note on top of it, 

_'Your family’s ancestors have a lot of stories in it. Check it out!’_

“Okay! My mistake dearest little brother. Do you WANT TO KNOW what disaster you caused FOR NOT EVEN HAD ONE MONOGRAM OF DECENCY TO COME TO THE GATHERING?!” James asked with a lot of pressured tone.

“No, I don’t want to know. Will you please get out of my room now? I want to read in peace”

“No Al, I don’t want to until I say what I am about to say! First, in my fifteen years living in this freaking world, I never saw our mother shed a single drop of tear until tonight" James said before taking a breath. Then he continued,

"Second, I want you to know that our beloved Grandma cooked EVERY SINGLE MEAL BASED ON YOUR TASTE! Yeah, you heard me! THEY ACTUALLY COOKED A WHOLE FEAST BASED ON YOUR FAVORITE AL! Tiramisu, Spicy chicken, Roast duck, apple pie, and freaking tomato juice that you worship! ALL OF THE MEAL IS DEDICATED FOR YOU! AND YOU WANT TO KNOW MORE?!” He started to raise his voice.

Albus knew for sure that James had no sign of stopping. He took a breath and continued,

“There wasn’t a single RED wall decoration. EVERYTHING WAS GREEN AND GOLD! They felt that it will make you feel more comfortable! YOU CAN FIGURE OUT WHY IT’S GREEN, ISN’T IT?” James asked.

Albus wasn’t sure whether he should answer it or not.

“BECAUSE ITS YOUR HOUSE COLOR!” James screamed with a red face.

He sighed, “Well, I am sorry then. I was a jerk and the worst person in the whole world. I should say yes to everything everyone wants from me. I should be a good boy like the rest of you. I should feel alright and smile even if the rest of the family outcast me” he said with ease and dismissively.

He really didn’t need James in his room right now. His lung began to get ticklish again and Albus really needs to drink the Coughing Draught. But he couldn’t do it in front of James. 

James looked baffled “Nobody outcast you Al. We all love you! Why you can’t see that? Mom loves you, Dad loves you, me and Lily love you! Nobody outcast you!”

For Merlin Sake! Albus’s lung began to get heavy and his brother didn’t seem to end his speech very soon. He drank water while his brother kept chanting, but he REALLY needed to get James out of his room, IMMEDIATELY!

“Grandma even redo your Weasley sweater and began to do it again last week because she thought the green wool wasn’t ‘Slytherin’ enough. Does that even make sense? Fred got a neon red sweater, Louis got a vermilion one with a lion picture which looks more like a dying cat to me, and Hugo got this weird-ass yellow scarf that looks like dragon dung! But not for you! She put so much effort into your present Al!”

Okay, that was super sweet of his Grandma and Albus felt like a jerk.

But James needed to shut his mouth and get out now!

Al got up from his bed and pushed James toward the door. And of course, James fought back.

“WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!” He screamed.

“I told you James, you need to get out!” Albus kept pushed his brother.

His lung began to burn! He couldn’t cough in front of James!

“I will get out when I finish speaking with you!” He pushed Albus back,

Before long, the two brothers' pushing game went on. James was a lot stronger than him, but Albus had more agility than his brother.

“Why are you so stubborn Al!” James screamed.

“You are the one who didn’t want to leave my room!” Albus yelled back.

“What is wrong with you Haaaah!” James pushed Albus harder and he fell on the floor.

They were about a meter away from the door and with his lung was on stake, he got up and did something he never dreamed to,

He punched James in the face. Hard.

BUGH!

“OUCH! WHAT THE HELL ALBUS!” James screamed.

Before he recovered, Albus punched James once again in his stomach and pushed him out of his room, once and for all.

After that, he locked the door and ran to his adjoining bathroom. He covered his mouth and started to cough. He could hear James still screaming from outside.

“ALBUS! OPEN THE DAMN DOOR!”

He coughed again and again. And as always, blood was splattering onto the floor.

“ALBUS!”

“ALBUS OPEN THE DOOR!” James kept screaming.

Albus kept coughing while closing his mouth with his hands. And for Merlin's sake! His head started to get fuzzy,

'It’s bad. It’s really bad’ he thought.

“James! What is happening?” someone asked from downstairs.

It was their father.

Oh no! No way! Albus heard his father’s steps went upstairs and his head got dizzier.

Oh crap!

His vision was beginning to get blurry too.

“James, what's happening?” his father asked calmly.

“Dad, Albus is…. stubborn” his brother answered.

“James” his father whispered.

It seemed that they had a very low-voiced conversation, for Albus couldn’t hear it. But he was sure they still outside.

He heard murmuring voices of James and his father's.

And the last thing Albus needed right now was his father came to his room and check on him.

No, oh no! That can't be happening.

Albus tried to get up, but his legs wouldn’t support his body. And so, the only thing he could do was lying on his bathroom floor with his own blood splatter on it.

He just needed his medicine.

.

.

.

.

.

“Kreacher” Albus whispered.

Crack!

Kreacher appeared

The house-elf genuinely looked terrified. His young master was lying on the floor, his body curled. One of his hand clutched on his own chest.

“Master Albus….” He whispered.

“Krea….cher. My… My cough” Albus sighed and sighed again before continuing “…potion”.

“Master Albus, you are hurt” Kreacher whispered.

“Suuuuuush. I be- beg you Kreacher” his master said in a very weak voice, “He-help me”.

This wasn’t right. His master shouldn’t beg to him. He was supposed to ask him.

“Krea….cher” the whisper of the house-elf ‘name was the last thing Albus said before everything went black through his vision.

“Master Albus… Master” Kreacher gently shakes his body.

Nothing happened

He shakes Albus’s body again and called his name

Nothing happened

“Master Albus…. Wake up” Kreacher said softly.

Nothing happened.

His master wasn’t waking up.

And there, Kreacher stood still. He couldn’t move his body, too shock from what’s just happened. His Master Albus’s body was there, unmoving and covered in his own blood on the cold bathroom floor.

Kreacher hesitated between two choices. Master Harry and James were outside the room. He could go to them and told them what happened to Master Albus. But the youngest master asked -no beg him to help him. Kreacher didn’t forget that he wasn’t supposed to tell anybody about his condition.

His Master was dying.

His Master will leave this world,

.

.

.

.

Just like his Master Regulus.

Kreacher clicked his fingers and Albus’s body levitated toward the bedroom. Then, his body gently landed onto his bed and covered with the blanket. He clicked his fingers again and all the presents on the bed levitated and stacked themselves on the corner of the room. Then, he grabbed a clean wipe and hop onto the bed. He gently cleaned the blood from Albus’s palms and mouth corners.

He loved this family. They were so good to him. Master Harry gave him his own room, bed, and money. That was more than enough for him. When the children came, Kreacher shared His Master’s joy. Master James was an active and cheerful child. As he grew up, he showed confidence and charism which befitted his family’s expectation of him. He was a good Master, although sometimes Kreacher was worried about his occasional mischiefs towards others.

Miss Lily was a sweet girl. It’s easy to fall in love with her. When she was a toddler, Kreacher was often being her companion of having a fake tea party. She would ask him to wear a hat or tiara, and children make up. It was fun for him, to make his Miss Lily happy without so much effort. He watched her grew into a lovely young lady. Always cares about others and always brave to defend the weak. Kreacher was sure she would grow into an honorable person.

His Master Albus was different. He was always different, even when he didn’t show it and others didn’t even aware of it. But Kreacher knew. The youngest master was the gentlest soul Kreacher ever met. He never wanted to burden other people or seek anyone else’s attention. He often kept his troubles to his own self. He’ll blame himself too hard when he made other people unhappy or angry. He’ll reward Kreacher every time he did something for him; whether it’s chocolate balls Kreacher loved so much or kisses or hugs.

But as Master Albus grew older, Kreacher knew he was more unhappy with each and passing days. He tried so hard to fit into the family and hide his own colors and desires until he couldn’t feel himself anymore. Nobody understood him. And now, all those unhappiness and self-repression destroyed him from inside.

Kreacher wouldn’t let that happen.

It was enough for him to watch a master died on his watch once.

Master Regulus’ dead was enough for him. He wouldn’t let Master Albus died.

Never.

“Don’t you worry Master Albus, Kreacher will help you to recover” Kreacher whispered while gently rubbing his youngest master’s hand.

“You will be happy again”.

\--


	5. Albus: One more problem

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She smiled and exposed her perfect teeth and slowly placed both hands on both of his cheeks.
> 
> She leaned closer and closer
> 
> She says in a soft voice once more “My Dear Albus”,
> 
> Before touched her plump lips into his own.

\--

Albus knew he was doomed the moment he saw her. The girl who was with him in Diagon Alley and gave him water now was sitting at the Slytherin table, LOOKING AT HIM.

_No, she can’t be here!_

But the face, hair, and demeanor were very much confirmed that she was indeed the girl from Diagon Alley. She was looking at him while smiling. Her black almond eyes were shining and sparkling from the reflection of the candle's flame.

_She is a Slytherin?!!_

Albus pretended not to see her as best as he could and rushed to sit next to Xavier, in front of Scorpius and Julian.

“Where have you been?!” Scorpius asked him with too much concern in his voice.

“Lavatory” Albus answered shortly and quickly drank the water in front of him.

He could suppress his coughs from the morning until he was in front of the school sink ten minutes ago. His blood didn’t come out that much, so he considered himself lucky tonight.

“Are you alright?!” Scorpius asked again.

Julian and Xavier also looking at him.

“Of course, I am. Why wouldn’t I?”

“Well, you don’t look like you are in your best condition” his friend replied.

“Don’t worry Scorp, I am just tired and sleepy” Albus answered truthfully.

“Eat something then and drink this milk. It will make you sleep easier” Scorpius poured milk into Albus’s glass.

“Here, eats this fried chicken too. I always sleep better after I eat meat with a lot of fat” Xavier said while putting two fried chickens and three sausages into Albus’s plate.

“Thank you, my loyal servants” said Albus jokingly.

Deep down in his heart, he was touched so very much by his friends’ gesture.

“Happy in your service, Your Highness” Julian answered, “you look like someone who really needs a lot of sleep Al. And by a lot, I mean like four days nonstop sleep” he added.

“I’ll say it’s at least a week” Xavier said.

Albus started to eat his meal and it did make him a lot better. The crispy chickens made his throat a little itchy though, so he switched of drinking milk and water. When the main dishes disappeared and changed into desserts, he picked up some brownies and a slice of custard pudding. He eats a lot that night, and it seemed that his body was agreeing with all the nutrition it received.

He was about to drink his milk again when he sensed that someone was watching him. He turned his head to the left and meet the Diagon Alley girl’s eyes again. She quickly turned her head and talked to his friend, Samantha.

_Who the hell is she?!_

“Hey, Julian” Albus called his friend.

“Yeah?” he stopped munching the macaron and looked at Albus.

“E.. who is the girl sits beside Ethan?”

All three of his friends turned their heads into their room mate’s direction. The girl was happily chatting with Samantha, Stephanie, and Ethan.

“I… don’t know” he answered, “I don’t think I ever meet her, actually” he added.

“I don’t even remember there is someone like her in our house” Xavier said.

“Whoever she is, Ethan definitely knows her” Scorpius answered.

Albus was too anxious about this whole unfortunate situation to munch another bite of brownies.

“Her name is Irene. Her full name is Irene Shui Saito-Rosier. Her mother is a French-English descendant and her father is Japanese. She moved from Japan around a month ago because her father’s family wants to expand their market here” Ethan explained after all of them back to their dorm.

All the five of them was already tucked in their own bed and just chilling while exchanging winter holiday story.

“What market?” Julian asked.

“Broomstick. Don’t worry captain, not a competition to your family” Ethan answered.

“Thanks, Merlin” Julian sighed happily, “Also, it means we get more Sacred Twenty-Eight in our year” he added.

“That makes four of us” Scorpius commented, “Me, you, Samantha, and Irene” he said to Xavier.

“She is a Rosier…” Xavier whispered, “I thought that all of them are rotting in Azkaban until their death” he added.

“Not for her family. Her grandfather was a young lad during the Grindelwald terror era. His mother ran them off to Japan after that. Later, he married an English woman who also lived in Japan. Irene’s mother was their only child” Ethan explained.

“That’s explained a lot” Julian commented.

“I am not going to lie. Through the whole feast, I was super curious about that. I mean, there isn’t a single Rosier alive who aren’t the Azkaban prisoners now. But I had enough manner to not asked that question to her” Ethan said.

Xavier chuckled, “Let me guess. It was Samantha wasn’t it?”

“She literally shamelessly said _‘Hey Irene, half of my relatives would never see the light of day anymore because they are trapped in Azkaban forever. And I know that your ancestors also have the same fate. How come your little family get away with it?’_ ” Ethan said while impersonating Samantha’s proud attitude.

“How was her reaction?” Scorpius asked curiously.

“She answered it truthfully and… calmly” Ethan answered “Like, it was just a piece of history and nothing more” he added.

“No shame at all?” Xavier commented.

“Nope. As a matter of fact, I think she was kind of proud of her family’s long history”

“Hear that Scorp? Xav?! It’s just a piece of history” Julian said.

“Easy for you to say” Scorpius sighed “Nobody calls you ‘Voldemort’s child’”.

“Oh, come on! It will pass! Those bullies are nothing than a bunch of losers” Julian said.

Albus just sat silently. He couldn’t even feel that he belongs in that place. For years, he endured being called a Slytherin Squib. It hurts him a lot but he couldn’t say it at loud and his best friend Scorpius endured something much more disgusting. And what hurt Albus the most was the fact that all those bullies are connected to his family. He grew up within a family which the society worshipped. His father was a hero to everyone, his mother was a former quidditch player, and his aunt was the minister of magic!

It hit him right in his heart knowing that all of his friends were enduring the opposite treatments from society. When Albus and his whole family got special tickets for a Quidditch Match, how about Xavier and his family? Did they even allow to get access to the match? When his family got a discount everywhere in town, how about Scorpius and his family? Did the shopkeeper even greet them with a smile?

_All of this is unfair_

_The society is disgusting and unfair_

_This whole world is unfair_

“ _Orchideous_ was spelled _or-KID-ee-us_. The spell was created by a Hungarian witch named Leslie Kertesz. The first time she created the spell, she could conjure only a branch of yellow tulip. Until the end of her life, she could improve the spell to the point where she could conjure a branch of rose complete with its leaves and thorn. About eight two years later, a Spanish witch named Balendin Huerta discovered a way to conjure a bouquet of red carnation. The formula to conjure a perfect bouquet of flower is; ½ concentration times 3x imaginations of the objects plus 1/71 weight of the conjurer minus 2x the weight of the wand",

"The wand movement should be a perfect circle in order to conjure exactly like what was imagined and the spark should be pink. It shouldn’t be above the neck because if the conjurer isn’t concentrating enough, it will backfire and produce _Herbifors_ instead, which will transfigure the conjurer's head to flower” Irene explained.

She took a breath and continue “For example, _Orchideous_ ” she waved her wand and a pink sparked from the tip of it,

In front of her, a purple vine of wisteria flower started to form and then other vines followed. There were a big four wisteria vines cascading the air and after that, the leaves started to form as well. A small twig bonded all of the branches, vines, and the leaves creating a single bouquet. In the end, Irene waved her wand for the last time, and the giant bouquet of wisteria vines fell slowly into her hands.

The class was quiet.

It was Monday afternoon Transfiguration class with the Hufflepuffs. Professor Sherburn explained what would they learn in the second half of the fourth year. Today, they would start with _Orchideous_ ; the spell to conjure a bouquet of flowers. She then asked the class if one of them knew anything about the spell.

The new girl, Irene turned her head to the right once and to the left once before raised her right hand to the air. The professor then simply asker her,

“Yes?”

After that, Irene just did what she just did. 

And it wasn’t the first time she did that. This morning Herbology with Ravenclaws also kind of similar. Professor Longbottom asked the class about some hideous plants called Flitterbloom. Irene answered the question with its history of discovery, the use, the misuse, the difference with Devil’s Snare, and also a scientific observatory and experiment about the damn plant somewhere in America. She was babbling about the plant for a solid eight minutes. Albus’s Godfather was so astonished and gave his house fifteen points.

The maximum Albus ever knew was ten points per question.

And now, Professor Sherburn seemed like she would join his Godfather of granted his house another high house points.

“Oh… umm…yeah. Hmmm, what’s your name again?” Professor Sherburn asked Irene.

“Irene. My name is Irene Saito-Rosier. You can call me Irene Rosier if that’s easier for you Professor” she answered cheerfully.

“Yes... umm. Thank you, Miss. Rosier for the excellent answer and a magnificent demonstration”

“You’re welcome Professor,” she said calmly.

“Yeah. Twenty points for Slytherin!” Professor Sherburn announced it to the class.

_Oh, Dumbledore!_

“She’s pretty cool” commented Scorpius quietly to Albus.

“Yeah, let’s just hope she wouldn’t be Rose 2.0” Albus answered shortly.

At dinner, the girls seemed happily chatting together throughout the whole meal. It seemed that the new girl bonded easily with the girls. Usually, it was Joyce with Estelle and Samantha with Stephanie. Now, the five of them seemed to move together all the time.

The only person who hadn’t introduced to the new girl was Albus himself. And of course, for obvious reason. She and Kreacher were the only people who had known about Albus's condition. And he didn’t want to get closer to her. And it seemed that she hadn’t wanted to approach him either.

_That’s better. Let’s stay being stranger._

“Merlin, it will be not much time before they form a solid pack” Ethan commented while looking at the girls.

The five of them still happily eating and chatting.

“The new girl is definitely a Slytherin through and through,” Julian said while eating his roast chickens.

“It’s good though, she earned forty points for our house in a single day” Ethan responded.

“This is the first time I am looking forward to a class with the Gryffindors” Julian said.

“Oh Yes!! She’s going to slay Rose!” Xavier commented, “No offense Al” he added.

“None taken” Albus replied quickly.

He didn’t even think of any of that. Which remains Albus about Scorpius too. He hoped that Scorpius already got over his crush over Rose. She wasn’t compatible in a single way with Scorpius. Scratch that! She wasn’t compatible with him in ANY way. Rose’s pride over their family was so over the top, just like any of his cousins. They took their privileges for granted, smashed it in everyone’s face, and acted like THEY WERE THE HEROES. It made Albus sick to his stomach.

_Let’s hope the new girl could indeed butcher Rose’s ego and pride._

“You are kind of good in Potion too Ethan. I think your grade was the highest among us” Julian said.

_OH yeah, tomorrow was Potion with Gryffindor._

Potion

He had to practice!

“Nah, I am not THAT good. I think Albus has potential though” Ethan’s comment broke Albus’s silence.

“That’s true. You were the only person who nailed the last potion weren’t you?” Scorpius opened his mouth for the first time that night.

“I was just lucky” Albus humbled.

They were finished with their dinner and about to go to the common room when Albus suddenly stopped his step. “Em, guys” he said to his friends.

All four of them turned their head towards him, “Yeah Al?” Scorpius asked.

“I- I want to go to the library. All of you go ahead”

Julian and Ethan looked at each other, “You want to study? I’ll tag along then” Julian said.

“Eh.. no thank you. I just want clear my head a little bit” Albus answered without looking at their eyes.

“Can I go with you?” Scorpius asked

“Oh, please no. Thank you, Scorp. I- I just need some time alone. Not a big deal”

“Okay Al. We’ll see you in our room” Xavier said knowingly.

“Yeah, thanks Xav. Em also, if I don’t come back past the curfew, will you not sell me out to the prefects?”

All of them looked at each other now, confuse expressions adorning their faces;

“Where exactly do you-” Scorpius question was cut,

“Yeah, sure. No problem Albus” Julian said quickly.

“Who do you think we are? Your cousins?” Xavier joked.

“Thanks! See you tomorrow” Albus said quickly.

He turned and walked to the opposite direction of the common room, he could hear a dim distancing voice of Julian said, “Come on Scorp, he’ll be alright”.

Albus past some Slytherin students heading to the common room too. He swiftly walked to the quiet corridor on the ground floor and he walked and walked again until he was in a corridor with a very large window at the end of it. Albus turned his head and made sure no one was there. Then he opened the door beside the window.

It led to a circular stair which he took the downward direction. He hadn’t known what part of the castle if he went upstairs but for now he was quite content to know what was in the downstairs.

The stair leads to another door with a dim corridor inside of it. When Albus first discovered this part of the castle, it was afternoon and the sun could slip through the small ventilations above them. Now, it was illuminated with moonlight. He walked through the corridor and turned left then right and found the small circular room, with a circular foyer. Across the room the was another door and it led to the narrow dark corridor.

When Albus opened the door, the candles illuminated themselves as if they were welcoming him. He smiled and continued his steps toward the black wooden door. The serene scenery of the black lake and Hogwarts ground greeted him. The open foyer was adorned with grapevines in all over its roof and arches.

He got into the room on the left side of the foyer and just as the narrow corridor, the room’s candles illuminate themselves when he walked in. Albus took out the tiny couch, armchair, and other furniture from his pouch bag and set them up in places he wanted.

“ _Engorgio_ ” Albus waved his hand.

One minute later, all of the furniture and books he got from his house was nicely set up within the room. He walked to the study table and set up his potion’s tools and ingredients above the tables.

_It would be my own private secret hideout._

Albus smiled at the thought. It was really nice. It was the nicest thing he could ask for. A place and freedom of his own.

“Right. Let’s get to work” he muttered to himself.

He opened his potion textbook and read through the Draught of Peace pages.

**Draught of Peace**

  1. **Add powdered moonstone until the potion turns green.**
  2. **Stir until the potion turns blue.**
  3. **Add powdered moonstone until the potion turns purple.**
  4. **Allow simmering until the potion turns pink.**
  5. **Add syrup of hellebore until the potion turns turquoise.**
  6. **Allow simmering until the potion turns purple.**
  7. ....



It seemed tricky enough for Albus. But if he could make it perfectly, perhaps he could use it for himself. Dumbledore knows how bad he needed this potion.

Learning from his past mistakes, now Albus read through all of the steps first. “So, I have to grind moonstone, porcupine quills, and unicorn horn first,” he said to himself.

Unicorn horn was really expensive and that was the moment when Albus wouldn’t be ashamed at all for having rich parents. How much exactly his Christmas present cost for his parents; Albus didn’t want to know. But he promised himself that he’ll thanks them later.

He stirred his mixture of powdered moonstone until green and turned into blue. If Albus's deduction was true, the counterclockwise movement would increase its acidity. Countering the Wit-Sharpening Potion counterclockwise effect.

Albus scribed a note in his book about the amount of powdered moonstone he used. He added another powdered moonstone a quarter amount to the mixture and stirred it clockwise.

The directions said that it needed to be purple. And he had been waiting for five minutes without any change, so he counterclockwise it. It turned purple! He followed the instruction clearly, until the fourteenth step. It was black and bubbly, not grey and shimmering.

Albus sighed, “Evanesco” he waved his wand.

The contain of his cauldron disappeared. He’s been working for an hour and a half and he failed.

_Okay. Let’s read something first_

He found information about unicorn horns and moonstone in one of his father’s books. It was complex and hard to understand. But he could get some of the ideas. Moonstone has a milky color and it would give a shimmering effect because of the shine. Unicorn horns had a weak basic property and had some complex compounds. Porcupine quills on the other hand were really acid and have a black color. It means the only logical explanation was either his porcupine quill was too much or his moonstone was too little.

So, where the hell was the bubbles come from?

He read and read and read again. Switching between three books until he found a page in Advance Potion Making about Potion 93. There was no title for the potion, except the number.

**Potion No. 93**

_Weird_

It also used the combination of porcupine quills, moonstone, and unicorn horn. But here, there was a step where it was supposed to be turned into grey and the porcupine quills were added last. Potion No.93 used valerian roots to naturalize and stabilize it.

_So, porcupine quills are very unstable stuff heh_

He tried to make the Draught of Peace again. He doubled the amount of moonstone he used and no counterclockwise stirs cheating. At the third step, he waited patiently until the mixture turned purple.

It needed thirteen minutes.

He added the porcupine quills pinch by pinch just so until it turned into dark orange. He quickly grabbed the valerian root and put them into the mixture and waited. The green extract from valerian root slowly sipped into the orange mixture.

_Don’t stir, don’t stir, don’t stir. Patience Albus, patience!_

And it did turn into turquoise.

He smiled at the sight of his potion and proceed to the next steps. By the end of the step, he was really careful to add the hellebore syrups.

_Should I stir it per drop?_

_It should have white color and silver vapors… One..Two..._

The color turned a little bit blue, so Albus stirred them.

_Okay, so it’s one drop and one stir. Got it!_

In the end, Albus got a white and a blueish sparkling potion. He waited and waited for the vapors to come out.

_Thanks, Merlin. It’s silver…_

He collapsed onto the couch and regulated his breath. It was overall, a good day. His coughs hadn’t come back, he had a peaceful mealtime, there wasn’t any homework yet, and his effort of practicing making potion was working. It was a lot of hard work and time.

Time…

His eyes were too heavy and Albus didn’t have any single energy left to check his watch. And in the end, he just succumbed to his slumber.

There was a distant voice, sang a beautiful hymn.

The was a gentle wind, tickled his hard cheeks bones.

There was sweet pleasant scent sipped into his soul

Albus opened his eyes and he saw an open dark sky.

The moon illuminates it while the stars light dancing surrounding the moon.

He sat and saw hundreds of lotus flowers surrounding him. And that’s when he realized he was sitting on the water. There were forests and mountains across the open water. Albus felt familiar with all of the surroundings, but he couldn’t recall where it was.

The beautiful hymn still played in the distance, resonated with the gorges, and sipping through the air. Albus tried to stand up, only to fall into the water.

He tried to scream but nothing came out

He fell and fell deeper into the water

Deeper

Deeper

The beautiful hymn was louder and louder as he fell deeper into the water.

Finally, the water stopped to suck him and he floats in the water

And then he saw it

An opulent shinning pavilion in the distance.

He swam into it without any thought.

The beautiful hymn was louder and clearer

When he almost reached the pavilion, he saw something

No, it was a person. A female person.

Her skin was as pale as snow and her knee-length hair was as blue as the clear sky.

Her eyes were closing while both her hands clasped in front of her bare round high plump breast

She stopped singing

And turned her head toward Albus and he could clearly see her form

Angelic

That was the only phrase that could describe her, everything about her.

Her small pink lips form a wide smile,

Her round purple eyes were sparkling,

And then, she was diving

No. She was flying towards him and stopped right in front of him

Their eyes met and Albus could see how beautiful she was from a closer look

 _“Why are you making me wait so long, My Dear Albus?”_ Her euphonious voice tickling his ears

And then, without his own control and will, he answered her,

 _“Dione...”_ he said with a croaky voice

She smiled and exposed her perfect teeth and slowly placed both hands on both of his cheeks.

She leaned closer and closer

She says in a soft voice once more _“My Dear Albus”,_

Before touched her plump lips into his own.

Albus shot his eyes open!

_Oh. My. God!_

He hurriedly arranged his breath and rose from the couch. His head was a little bit dizzy from the sudden movement, so he supported himself while grabbing the wall. After some time, he looked at his watch.

**5:00**

He quickly went out of the room and the fresh morning breeze suddenly cool him down. He sighed and composed himself. Then, continuing his walking back toward his dorm. It made him wonder what would his friends said about his absence throughout the whole night.

Albus silently and carefully checked his surrounding before turning into another corridor. The castle was quiet and he could bet everyone was still sleeping. Except maybe the house-elves down in the kitchen. The path toward Slytherin's common room was dim, with three candles illuminates it.

“Loxocemus” he muttered in front of the wall.

The wall opened and in no time, he was inside the Slytherin realm. And he would be lying to himself if wasn’t relieved. The green lantern, the serene scenery of the black lake’s water, the scent of dying embers, all of them calm Albus.

He quietly opened the door and could see all of his friends were still sleeping. It amazed Albus that none of them was snoring. Julian always maintains his cool even in his sleep. Xavier liked to sleep in his right side and Ethan’s arms were always stretched above his head. Scorpius always slept with his both of his arms remain inside his blanket.

He smiled. At least he could lie that he came back sometimes in the night.

Knowing that he wouldn’t be able to sleep, he went straight to the bathroom and took a shower as usual. 

Two hands shot in the air. One was Rose’s and the other was Irene’s.

“Here we go~~” Ethan whispered in an amusing tone.

It was the Potion Class with the Gryffindors. Professor Wegner just asked the class if any of them had an early read about The Calming Draught. He asked the class what did they know about the said Potion. And of course, he smiled in amusement for the new sight. Usually, it was always Rose who try to be active. Irene might bring something to the class dynamic.

“Well, let’s give a chance to the newcomer, shall we” Professor Wegner smiled.

Rose looked intrigued too to Irene.

“Please, your answer Miss?”

“Draught of Peace is an advance potion created by French Doctor named Raymond Larue back in 1853. His daughter Alice was diagnosed with madness by other doctors eight years priors. She was put in an asylum which made her more unstable. Driven by his love for his daughter, he developed a potion that was supposed to stabilize his daughter’s emotion. After years of failed experiments, he created his first successful potion and used it to another patient. But when he made the potion for his own daughter, he made a mistake. He added too much unicorn horn powder, and Alice fell into a deep irreversible sleep. After a month of watching his daughter slept and had no sign to wake up, he killed himself.

The ingredients of making this potion are; moonstone powder, unicorn horn powder, and porcupine quill powder. Ingredients must be added in the exact order and amounts specified, and the potion needs to be stirred 7 times, both clockwise and counter-clockwise. Before the addition of the final ingredient, hellebore, the temperature of the flames must be lowered, and the potion allowed to simmer for seven minutes.

If brewed correctly, the potion will emit a silvery vapor, but the possible characteristics of a failed batch seem to be endless; everything from green sparks, dark grey steam, a sulfurous odor, a cement-like consistency, to a dangerous instability that will cause it to explode”.

Finally, Irene stopped her explanation after about five minutes of talking.

 _“She might as well be the teacher”,_ Albus thought indifferently.

The class went silent again.

“Wonderful explanation, Miss Rosier. It seemed that Professor Longbottom wasn’t exaggerating about how wide your knowledge is. Ten points for Slytherin” Professor Wegner said.

“Thank you, Professor” Irene answered.

“Now! As Irene said, it was an advanced potion. There will be times where everything goes wrong even if you have followed the correct instruction. It’s because the combination of the ingredients makes a very unstable mixture. The properties of each ingredient are opposing each other. But there are two ways of stabilizing it. One is through a spell, the other is an additional ingredient. Anyone know about these two tricks?” Professor Wegner asked.

Irene’s hand shot in the air again, while Rose’s wasn't.

“Yes, Miss Rosier?”

“I just know the spell. It’s _Conquiesco_ ”

“Yes, that’s correct. Ten points to Slytherin” Professor Wegner smiled. “Now, the ingredient. Anyone knows?”

Nobody answered.

“Miss Weasley?” He asked Rose.

She shakes her head. Albus could tell she didn’t happy about it. And so, he slowly raised his hand in the air.

“Ah! Mr.Potter” Professor Wegner exclaimed.

Great! Now everyone was looking at him.

“It’s Valerian Root” he answered shortly.

Professor Wegner looked at him and nodded his head, a sign to encourage him to continue his answer.

“Porcupine quill is really acid and brings a very strong color to the mixture. Valerian Root will help. It’s a sedative, so it could bring the Draught of Peace’s effect even better” Albus explained more.

“Very great Mr. Potter. Another ten points to Slytherin”.

Albus looked at Rose again and found that she stared at him intensely. She quickly turned her head into another direction.

After that, the class started to make the said potion. Professor Wegner sat into his chair and started to scribe on his papers while occasionally got up and walked around the class to see his students’ progress.

As usual, Julian took a table with the Gryffindor. But now, Stephanie also joined his table, as Irene got the table with the rest of the girl. Merlin knew everyone in his house was try to get the two of them together.

He put the exact amount of ingredients and steps as yesterday’s practice.

“Xav! Don’t stir! Let it simmer for a while until it turns out purple” Albus said to Xavier who worked beside him.

Xavier was shocked at first, “It’s already ten minutes” he said.

“Don’t worry, it would change color eventually. Mine also hasn’t changed and it’s already twelve minutes. You two, do exactly as the steps say. Don’t rush” he said to Scorpius and Ethan.

“Aye captain” Ethan answered.

“You seem to know a lot about it” Scorpius commented.

“I’ve read about it” Albus smiled.

Albus helped his friends through the whole class and in the end, all three of them were had a moderate success while Albus’s potion had perfect physical properties as his last practice; a white shimmering mixture with silver vapors. Scorpius’s and Xavier’s potion were white with white vapor, Ethan’s was blueish but had a silver vapor.

“Next time, I'd like to sit with you guys” commented Julian after the class.

He said that his potion wasn’t that good.

“Come on, you already get perfect marks in other classes” Xavier replied.

“Yeah right,” Julian rolled his eyes, “I successfully knocked over the hellebore syrup and sprayed in on all over the table. The two of us didn’t get to finish our last step, the Gryffindors didn’t want to share their syrup and it’s all entirely my fault!” he rambled.

“You just nervous dude” Ethan commented.

_Oh God! Not now_

His lung was burning again

“Eh guys, you all go ahead,” Albus said to his friends.

All of them stopped their steps and looking back at him.

“Lavatory,” he said quickly.

“Do you want me to tag alo-”

“Scorp!” Julian, Ethan, and Xavier called Scorpius at the same time before he could finish his sentence.

Albus had no idea what conversation did they had when he wasn’t around. But it seemed pretty good for Albus’s situation.

His lung was burning again.

“Yeah, see you at the dorm Al” Xavier said.

Albus immediately ran and ran as fast as he could to the second-floor lavatory, not many people use it. His chest felt ticklish a lot and it means that he would cough at any moment.

“Uhhuuuuk” he started to cough while he was running through the hallway.

The second-floor boy's Lavatory was empty and Albus truly felt lucky. He quickly got into one of the stalls and right after he closed the door, he coughed madly.

It’s always the same thing over and over again.

Uhhuuukk HUUUuk!

He coughed and blood began to come out of his mouth

UHHHuuuuk HuUHUUUK!

Tak… Tak…Tak…

Albus heard sounds of steps within the bathroom and God knew how much he fought his coughs sound. He covered his mouth but that was a failed attempt to hide the sound.

And fate just proved once again of how unlucky he was. The stall beside him was opened and closed while he was coughing continuedly. Whoever was in the stall definitely could hear him.

Finally, the cough was ended and he had very hard and hoarse breaths. He flushed the toilet and sat there for a while regulating his breath. His hands were covered in blood and his head was fuzzy.

The stall beside him was opened and closed again. Albus also heard fading sound of footsteps.

And so, Albus braved himself to get out of his stall. He opened the door and that’s when he realized that he was truly one of the unluckiest people in this world.

There, stood a lean boy with a rose blond hair and glittering pair of blue eyes looking directly at him. He clearly waiting for him to come out. The boy’s beautiful aristocratic face was hardened after observing Albus’s appearance. He looked at Albus’s blood-covered hands and mouth. His eyes were rounding and his mouth opened slightly. Clearly bewildered by Albus.

“Albus?” the boy whispered.

And there, Albus stood still with hands and mouth covered in his own blood, watering pair of eyes looking at his cousin. A 5th year Gryffindor student,

Louis Weasley. 

\--

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the end of the story introduction. The next chapter will be the beginning of the conflict introduction.


	6. Scorpius and Lily: The Revelations of Friend and Sister

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He smiled and looked at the sky, lost in thoughts, “My mother once said to me to try to be the best version of a man could be”
> 
> “I am still trying to find out how to be one” he added.
> 
> There was silence again. The sun was beginning to set and the two of them were too mesmerized by the scenery to speak again. Although there were so many questions from both of them, they stayed silent. And there, the two of them together. Enjoying the sunset with the afternoon breeze tickling them softly.

**Scorpius**

The warmth of the fire, the warmth of the bed, and the warmth of hot drinks were the things Scorpius loved the most these days. Or rather, the only things he could feel these days. Right after coming back from the time travels an adventure with Albus, he knew there was something changed within his body. It felt like something was taken out of his body. There was something hollow within himself, in which he couldn’t pinpoint exactly what it was.

He found the answer when he ate a meal the next day with his father.

He couldn’t taste anything.

Whether they were supposed to be sweet or sour

Whether they were supposed to be salty or

Whether they were supposed to be bitter.

He couldn’t taste anything.

Everything was bleak, cold, and untasteful.

He panicked and grabbed every food on the table and shoved them to his mouth.

Bread,

soup,

jam,

egg,

and almost everything that was served on the table. His father looked at him warily and slightly disgusted.

“Scorpius, calm down” his father said calmly.

But Scorpius couldn’t hear them at that very moment. Every food in his mouth didn’t taste anything. There was nothing, except for the warmth of the foods. 

Scorpius looked at both of his hands in horror and rose from his chair. He dashed to the kitchen and found a bucket of ice on the counter. He touched the ice with his palms,

And felt nothing.

His eyes started to shake and tears were about to come up when his father called him through the kitchen’s door.

“Scorpius, what happened?” his father asked him with confusion in his face.

He turned his head toward his father and gulped, “Dad…” Scorpius whispered

\--

“So, you couldn't taste anything and you couldn't feel any cold?” the healer asked

Scorpius nodded his head.

“Well, at least you could detect a rising temperature still. I have to say, Mr Malfoy, nothing is wrong with you. At least, physically” he continued.

“Absolutely nothing?” his father asked the healer.

“Yes. The examination of his organs is all showing a healthy and normal result”

“When does it start?” the healer asked Scorpius, “Do you feel that something might trigger it?” he added.

Scorpius looked at his father. Of course, he knew he couldn’t tell the healer about their little time travel adventure.

“This morning during breakfast. And no Doctor, I have no idea what triggered it” Scorpius answered.

“Is there anything we can do for now, doctor?” his father asked.

The healer, Mr. Robertson got quite. He shakes his head a view times before answered, “For now, I will prescribe you medicines to heighten your sensitivity. In the meantime, I’ll research your case, Mr. Malfoy”

“But of course, this kind of medication has its risk,” Mr. Robertson said.

“What is it, Doctor?” Scorpius asked.

“Well, you said that you can still feel the heat. You’ll be much more sensitive to it” he said.

“Understood”

“Also, I had to say the possibilities of your future condition”

“Usually, the inability to sense something or the decline to taste something happens to elder wizards. Their organs were slowly unable to work properly, due to age. Their nerve couldn’t sense any stimulus and couldn’t answer properly to it. Of course, in the end, every sense and organs stop altogether and they meet the end of their days”

“As for your case, your physical organs are working properly but you couldn't sense them working. But let just say that your condition was the same as those elders. You said that you couldn't taste anything and detect the lowering temperature. I should warn you that maybe, there will be a time when you wouldn’t even feel hungry or feel the need to go to the bathroom, or even feel anything at all”. Mr. Robertson ended his hypothesis.

The room fell silent for a very long time, not even a breathing sound. His father looked down, his fists were clenched and his expression was blank. Scorpius closed his eyes,

_This is it. This is my price._

“In other words, there would come a day when I’ll live as a living corpse” Scorpius finally had the courage to say it.

Mr. Robertson didn’t correct him.

\--

The letter from his father came during breakfast. He looked up around to see what’s his friends doing and made sure they didn’t pipe in his father’s letter. Ethan and Xavier eating and chatting happily. Julian read the newspaper while munching on his toast. And his best friend Albus sipping his glass of milk.

Albus.

He hadn’t told Albus about his condition, yet. But Scorpius was sure that something also happened to Albus. The problem was, he couldn’t get time to actually sat down with Albus and talk seriously about themselves. One reason was that Albus seemed couldn’t calm his obsession down about studying. The other was that his other friends _strongly suggest_ him to give Albus some space.

Strongly suggest was an understatement. Julian screamed at him once,

“YOU TWO NEED YOUR OWN SPACE! TRY SOMETHING NEW FOR YOURSELF! LET HIM TRY SOMETHING NEW FOR HIMSELF! YOU NEED TO THINK ABOUT YOUR OWN PROBLEM BY YOURSELF FOR ONCE AND SO IS HE!”

_Albus was sick, that’s for sure._

Scorpius really wanted to know what’s wrong with him. From outside, he looked like someone who had a crazy unhealthy diet and constant sleep deprivation. It was enough for Scorpius to get worried over his best friend. But he wanted to know more because he was sure it was much much more than losing weight and having sleep problems.

_Soon, I’ll live like the dead. What’s worse than that?_

**_My Son,_ **

**_I wish nothing more than your happiness and health. How was your week? Have you talked to Albus about it?_ **

**_Yesterday, Mr. Robertson sent me a letter. He said that he might find someone who could help us to cure your problems._ **

**_But it seemed that we can’t do it now and has to wait until the summer holiday comes. And we might have to travel a bit north._ **

**_He is a healer named Mr. Birger from Greenland._ **

**_He had treated some patients -most of them were researchers who lost their sense after spending so much time in an extremely cold winter observing tiny penguins and mountain yeti. Let’s hope he got some clue about yours._ **

**_So yeah, we’ll have a little cool summer holiday trip together._ **

**_Hang in there Scorpius,_ **

**_I promise everything will be alright._ **

**_In the meantime, keep your body healthy, eat significantly, go to the bathroom regularly every two hours, and don’t forget to drink your medicines._ **

**_Your Dad._ **

He folded the letter and put it neatly into his backpack. Scorpius will answer his father’s letter for later. Also, having a serious conversation with Albus becoming his top priority now. He had to find the right time.

“Hei Xav, remember the first time we met?” Julian suddenly asked.

“Don’t underestimate me. It was still as clear as the fresh morning air. Your arrogance is hard to forget” Xavier answered, “You came into the restaurant as if you were the owner”.

All of us chuckled, except for Julian of course. “Well yeah! Maybe I should buy the restaurant and become the _real_ owner, because the current one was just found dead” Julian replied, “your cousin is here Al” he added.

Julian placed the newspaper in the middle of the table and the four of them nudge their head into it. The news was written as the main article in the **Local** section;

 **The Lady of Msaw Ætare** **was Found Dead, Left No Next Owner**

 **The Restaurant owner of Msaw Ætare** **, the one hundred and twenty-three years old Mrs. Alicia Ætare** **was found dead last night by her mongrel puppy. The puppy then barked and caught the attention of her maid, Ms. Miley Baker. She was sleeping when she heard the puppy and rushed to see what’s going on. Her Mistress was on her bed, blood splattered from her stomach, eyes closed, and bald. All of her hair was shaved clean and sprayed all over the bed.**

**The rookie Auror, Lupin was appointed to investigate the case. Until this very morning, the total evidence in the crime scene was still smalls. Auror Lupin commented to Daily Prophet after his investigation of this day ended; …**

“Oh crap, imagine being murdered and found by your pup” Ethan commented

“Imagine being bald on your funeral” Xavier replied

“Oh, I’ll still be freaking gorgeous” Ethan answered.

“Stop it, that’s not funny. It’s horrible” Julian said.

“Well, at least she wouldn’t be alone at her own funeral. She has people who looked after her” Scorpius commented.

“This is- ” Albus finally opened his mouth "brutal".

The day passed as usual- as usual as they would be after Irene came. This new girl would be the teacher's favorite in no time, rivaling Rose. Scorpius’s crush toward Rose started to fade after her rejection toward his confession months ago. It was freaking embarrassing!

They simply didn’t have many things in common and Scorpius knew it. She was super popular, a Gryffindor, daughter of the Minister of Magic, and definitely not a loser like him. Of course, he didn’t have a single resentment toward his father and family. He loved his father and everything he did wrong in the past wouldn’t change that.

His paternal grandparents though, another whole story. Scorpius never really felt close to them. Fortunately, grandparents Greengrass were kind to him and Aunt Daphne and her family were always affectionate toward him. That was more than enough for Scorpius. He knew from the very start that his school life wouldn’t be so wonderful. For three years, Albus was always beside him and he wouldn’t be able to express how huge his gratitude toward his best friend. He was there when his beloved mother died, he was there when others didn’t, he was there the whole time. That was more than enough for Scorpius.

After their adventure, they approached their other roommates. And surprisingly, they excepted them with open arms. He felt more secure and comfortable around the Slytherins. He didn’t feel like some death eater freak as other people branded him to be. And yes, it had to do with the fact that some people in his year also had similar family situations with him. Stephanie, Samantha, and Xavier were having worse family matters than him. And being surrounded by the people who understood him was enough for him. Way more than enough.

“Ten points for Slytherin” Professor Creevey announced.

Irene smiled and gave Samantha a little high five.

Scorpius instantly looked at Rose. She sat with Polly Chapman, surrounded by her other close friends. It might be hard for her that she wasn’t the only star in the class. Not to mention that her rival was a Slytherin. She had everything from the beginning; her parents’ glory, her family’s privilege, and of course her ambition. For a Gryffindor, she was sure super ambitious in getting the best at everything. He then looked at Albus, who sat beside him. Always sat beside him, it’s in their code of brotherhood. And to his surprise, Albus was smirking while looking at Rose's dissatisfaction.

Now, that was weird. He didn’t know that Albus liked those sorts of rivalry things.

“Irene is about to declare war on Rose, isn’t she?” Ethan whispered from behind.

“Certainly” Scorpius answered shortly.

Professor Creevey gave them homework of a thirteen-and-a-half-inch essay on Erkling by the end of the class. The students started to leave and Scorpius quickly asked Albus,

“Hey Al, want to work on the essay together?”

“Sure” Albus answered while put his belongings into his backpack.

“Cool. How about now?”

“Now?”

The two of them started to walked to the outside, “Yeah, we could study other things or just chill and lay down later” Scorpius suggested.

“I am sorry Scorp, I can’t” he answered.

They’ve reached the corridor outside the DADA classroom, “Why?”

“I’ve made a promise to hang out with someone else” he said.

“What hangs out? Who?”

“Him” Albus nudged toward the figure.

It was Louis Weasley. He was leaning on the sidewall on the corridor while talking to Rose. Her friend Polly was beside her. Louis looked up from Rose and waved in their direction. Albus and he then approached the group.

“Just want to make sure you aren’t running away,” Louis said to Albus.

Rose, Polly, and Scorpius eyed the two of them oddly, “What is going on?” Rose asked.

“Nothing of your concern” Albus answered Rose lazily, “And no Louis, I wouldn’t run away. I’ve promised to you, am I not?” he added.

Rose seemed offended by Albus's words, “Well, for your information I am worried about Louis and not you”.

“Great, like I will appreciate your attention toward me. Don’t make me laugh” Albus replied half-heartedly. 

Rose was about to open her mouth again before Louis stopped them, “Will you two please be nice to each other for a second. The two of you are family” he said calmly.

_True. A family should love each other._

“Sorry Rose, we’ll chat later. Come on, Al. Let’s go” he threw his right arm around Albus’s shoulder.

“See you at dinner, Scorp” Albus said.

Louis and Albus walked ahead, leaving Scorpius with Rose and Polly. The two girls then left the place without further words, left Scorpius alone in the hallway. He sighed and dragged his feet into the library.

Scorpius walked aimlessly, browsed through the shelves of books, and settled in a single study table most far away from the library entrance. The window in front of him looked upon the quidditch pitch as well as the surrounding forest, vale, and mountains. He took his father's letter and read it once again. Then, Scorpius took a parchment and started to write;

**_Dad_ **

**_It’s nice knowing there’s a chance of getting healed._ **

**_As for Albus, still had no luck. It seemed that somehow the universe pulled me and Albus away from each other. But I’ll always try. I know that something also wrong with him._ **

**_Yeah, I am already looking forward to our ‘trip’. It will be my first time to Greenland. I hope you could arrange for us to wander around a bit though, ahaha._ **

**_As far as my situation, may you know that I am alright dad, you don’t have to worry about me._ **

**_I hope you are not stressing yourself out, dad. I am strong enough now and I have friends that I know will come to my aid if I ever need one._ **

**_Your Son,_ **

**_Scorpius._ **

**_p.s: Aunt Daphne sent me a letter yesterday. She misses mom so much. Perhaps you ought to send her a letter or two._ **

After finished packing the letter into an envelope, Scorpius was in dilemma.

_DADA essay, now… later… now… later… now… later… now… later._

_Later_

There was no reason to do his homework now, as it was just a façade to talk to Albus. Now that Scorpius thought about it, his best friend never- and by never it means from the moment both of them step in Hogwarts- hanged out with Louis. Why so sudden though? He even seldom talked to his own siblings. He said he didn’t like James that much. But of course, Scorpius realized it was just Albus’s inferiority to James.

_I mean if James is my brother, I will also feel like a complete clown compared to him_

And then, there was his sister Lily. Scorpius didn’t know much about her. Albus never mentioned her in their conversation nor she ever approached them. If there was one thing for sure Scorpius knew, it was that she observed Albus intently during meal times. Albus may never felt any stare directed at him, but Scorpius did. He had been very observant of people’s stare since he was a toddler. People looked at him as if he was a monster.

His deep thought about his life made him didn’t realize that he dragged his own body up and exited the library. He walked toward the castle ground to the owlery. Although he couldn’t feel the late winter’s cold, the afternoon breeze was so fresh in Scorpius’s nose. As he was near the owlery, Scorpius smelled the dirty birdy musk coming from it. He was grateful enough that he still could smell things. He missed the taste of the foods he liked.

_I guess it was a way to punish me for never feel grateful for what I have. Nice._

When he was about to step into the stony stairs led to the owlery tower, he looked into the ground and found an envelope. There was writing on the envelope;

**_To: Mommy_ **

**_Potter Estate, Wolfsbane Street No. 6-17 Block A, Godric Hollow._ **

“What?” Scorpius murmured at loud.

He turned his head left and right several times to make sure that there wasn’t anyone. Albus was nowhere to be found and Scorpius doubt that he would be careless enough to leave a letter on the ground. Albus was meticulous, Scorpius knew that for sure. So, it was either James or Lily. But there wasn’t any sign of them too.

And so, he continued his walk to the tower. As he walked into the owlery, he found the mysterious owner of the letter. Albus’s sister was sitting on the ground, with her school belongings scattered around her. She was so busy digging into her backpack to even notice him.

Her ginger red hair was divided into two parts, one was tied into a high ponytail while the other part of her hair was cascading her back head and some of the strain was cupping her oval face. She got a big red bow to adore her ponytail.

As cute as her hair was, her face was another matter. She looked really troubled and panicked. Her forehead frowned and her thin lips pursed.

“Are you looking for this?” Scorpius asked.

She suddenly looked up to him. Her round brown eyes met his hooded grey ones.

**Lily**

He was standing there. His slick bright blond hair was combed neatly. The breeze blew his hair a little bit. His uniform was neat, not a hair out of place even though the green and silver tie was slightly loosened. The folded school robe was nestled on his brown leather sling bag. In his left arm, he held two envelopes.

_Malfoy_

Scorpius looked down at her with a calm expression, although he couldn’t hide a little bit of smirk in his lips. He looked amused by what he saw which Lily just realized it was her. She immediately looked at her surroundings. It was a bloody mess.

Lily immediately stood up and tidied up her robe. She crouched again to organize her school belongings into her bag and Scorpius suddenly mimicked her. He was in front of her, picking her pen case and notebook and put it into her school bag.

“Thanks, Malfoy” Lily said without looking at him.

She was too embarrassed for Dumbledore's sake!

“No problem. Here” he said while handing her one of the envelopes, “I found it on the ground, on the way up here” he added.

Lily silently received the letter from him and he smiled at her. Scorpius stood up and walked into one of the bird perch. A grey eagle owl squawked and dove into the perch. She was standing silently looking at him for a while. He caressed the owl while feeding him some of the owl treats.

Quaaacck!

Her owl’s squawk reminded Lily why the owl was waiting for so long on his perch.

“Sorry to keep you waiting Mr. Padfoot. Here, give it to mommy as usual, okay?” she said to her owl cheerfully. 

The owl then flew away from the owlery together with Scorpius’s owl into the distance. Scorpius looked at his owl flew until he couldn’t see him again. Meanwhile, Lily was in deep thought; Her brother’s best friend was here with her and it would be a good chance to talk to him about her brother.

_‘I mean, there’s no freaking way he doesn’t know about Albus. They practically married to each other’ Lily thought._

_‘But I don’t know him. It would be awkward, for sure!’_

_‘How to start a conversation with him? Should I just fire the question about my brother or should I make a chit chat first?’_

_‘Hei Malfoy… then what?’_

_‘God, James would be more qualified to do this than me’_

_‘Why am I such a cry baby? I am strong, independent girl’_

_‘Should I talk about the weather at first? That seems a good idea’_

Lily turned her head to where Scorpius just stood up.

He was already gone.

“No way!”

She rushed toward the stair and saw Scorpius just about to touch the ground, “Malfoy!” she screamed without much thought.

He stopped and looked up at her. She immediately ran toward him. Before she could touch the ground, he extended one of his arms toward her.

Lily looked at his hand in question.

“Oh sorry, courtesy habit” he said while putting his hand back to his side.

Lily scratched the back of her neck, feeling awkward. “Right. So em… How are you doing Malfoy?” Lily timidly asked.

Now, Scorpius was the one who felt awkward, “Good. I suppose” he answered. “Is there something you need?” he added.

Great! He made it easy for her, “Yeah. I- I want to… I want to ask you about my brother” Lily finally asked.

And of course, the boy in front of her saw it coming. “Of course, you will” then, he sighed and nudge his head toward a tree and started walking away from her.

Lily followed him and they settled under one of the giant pine trees that face the black lake. It was rather far from the owlery and from people’s eyes. Scorpius sat on one side of the tree and she sat on the other. He placed his bag beside him while she put hers on top of her lap.

“First, let set a rule,” Scorpius said.

“Rule?” Lily asked.

“Yup. I will tell you what I know and in exchange, you will tell me what you know”

“That’s sound fair”

“Good. Who’s first?” he asked.

“I asked you. So it’s only appropriate if you tell me first, Malfoy” Lily replied.

Scorpius looked at Lily for a while and for a second, it made her nervous.

“Okay” he replied shortly.

“After we came back from the past, something happened. I know there’s something wrong with him, but I couldn’t point it out. My dad found an article about a ministry officer who studied time travel in the past. She traveled some centuries back and when she came into the present time, her body was wrecked. We traveled through times, jumped back, and jumped again several times. It was bounded to demand payment, wasn’t it?” he asked Lily without the intention of getting an answer.

“At first I thought it was a lot of weight loss and nightmares for Albus. But that was too mild for it. I watched him trashed his bed at night but I know there is something fundamentally bigger than that. I was with him when he began his obsession with mastering any form of magic. I was with him the whole time, yet I couldn’t realize what’s wrong with him”.

There was a silence after that. The afternoon breeze was so soothing, both of them closed their eyes and just enjoying the moment. That afternoon, the clouds gathering on the horizon creating a majestic scenery.

“It was his lungs” Lily quietly said.

Scorpius didn’t say anything and she thought it was a signal for her to continue.

“I saw it. On the day of the departure to Hogwarts, that morning I saw him. It was almost the time to go but Albus took too much time. So, mom asked me to fetch him. I knocked on his door several times but he didn’t answer it. So, I quietly got into his room. That’s when I heard it from his bathroom”

“Coughs, horrible heavy coughs. For some time, I couldn’t even move my legs. Then, I walked as quietly as I could to peek into the bathroom. My brother, covered his mouth with all his might to redeem the sound. His head was on the floor while his body bent on his knee. He didn’t even realize I was there”

Lily couldn’t even feel the tears that started running down on her cheeks.

“I was a coward. Instead of approached him, I walked away… just like that. I was numb inside and I felt really scared…”

“I am scared that… ahh... I am scared that…” 

She sobs quietly while pinching down her fingers. “At that time, I realize why my brother was distancing himself from the rest of the family. Many of my cousins were annoyed by his behavior, even James was annoyed!”

Scorpius looked at her, “Albus whom I know, was always selfless. He didn’t want other people to worry and sad over him”.

“I know that. I always know that” Lily said while trying to wipe her tears and a little snout coming from her nose.

Scorpius smiled and handed her a handkerchief. Lily looked at him and the handkerchief in turns, confused. “Another courtesy habit” he said.

She smirked and received the handkerchief to wipe her tears. Her face must be a mess right now.

“You are weird, Malfoy” she said to Scorpius.

He chuckled, “Isn’t that a little rude to say to someone who just gives you his handkerchief. The standard response should be ‘thank you’”.

“Well, thank you” Lily said suddenly, realizing that she was indeed rude to him, “but you still weird” she added.

“Why?” he asked.

“You courtesy habits make me feel like you are….. a middle age dude” she answered, “You know, like those characters in historical movies”.

He smiled and looked at the sky, lost in thoughts, “My mother once said to me to try to be the best version of a man could be”

“I am still trying to find out how to be one” he added.

There was silence again. The sun was beginning to set and the two of them were too mesmerized by the scenery to speak again. Although there were so many questions from both of them, they stayed silent. And there, the two of them together. Enjoying the sunset with the afternoon breeze tickling them softly.

The dinner time was as loud as usual. Lily was sitting with her cousins; Lucy and Fred were beside her, while Molly and Hugo sat in front of them. The meals looked delicious, but Lily couldn’t put her thought on them. There were just too many things in her head right now. She and Scorpius agreed to keep Albus's condition a secret and observe the development. Now that Scorpius already knew, he could keep an eye on Albus. How he handled the situations and how he kept his condition remain a secret. If it got too much, they’ll jump into it.

Lily looked at the Slytherin table and immediately found her brother. His back was facing her, so she couldn’t observe whether he eat his meals or not. Judging by his hand movement, it seemed that he did eat something. Scorpius was in front of him, chatting with Irene who sat beside him. They were surrounded by other people whom Lily knew also in fourth years even if she didn’t know their names.

_The guy beside Albus was…… em… Accrington. One of the Slytherin’s beater._

“Lils, your brother is not going to disappear. You don’t have to eye him all the time” Fred’s voice startled her.

She pursed her lips at him, “Oh, Shut up Freddie”.

“You worry too much. Here, eat some chicken wings” Fred said while scooping a bunch of them into Lily’s plate.

“It’s too much!” Lily rose her voice to him.

“Oh well, you are too little and should eat more and get bigger soon,” he said, “look at Hugo!” he added.

Hugo looked at them, confused. He had drum stick on his left hand and chicken nugget on his right hand. He eats them like he was on an open eating contest.

“What? I am hungry!” he said while munching on his meals.

“And I am not little!” she said.

“Yeah, right!” Fred ruffled her hair.

She sighed and began to pick on one of the chicken wings with her hand. While eating her chicken wing, her eyes drifted to the Slytherin table again. Scorpius was eating something that looks like roast beef. He was sitting straight, holding a knife and fork and eat in a calming way, even while he was chatting with the others. He sliced little bites and open his mouth slightly before munching with a close mouth. 

_The best version of a man could be_

Lily shifted her gaze to those around her. Fred was funny and caring, he liked to prank people. But that was in his nature, nothing would stop him. James was cool, he was great at sport and pretty smart, he was charming enough to attract many girls and boys to like him. And by _like_ means asking Lily to deliver them love letters and gifts to him, which was really annoying to her. Louis was super nice, smart, and gentle. He cared for everybody and out of all her male cousins, he understood girls the most. Having two older sisters made you that way. And Hugo, well he likes to eat.

Lily looked at Hugo who still so eager to eat his meals.

_In the name of Godric! He really likes to eat._

But overall, she knew she was surrounded by nice people. Although she couldn’t deny that Hugo and Rose were a little bit different since last year after her Aunt Hermione became the Minister. Rose became much more unbearable when it came to school matters. And Hugo could be rather haughty at times. That didn’t mean Lily disliked them though. They were her family and she loved them no matter what.

Her eyes back to Scorpius again. The way he eats was to…. gentleman for her. Yeah, there wasn’t a batter word for it. He eats as if it was a fancy dinner.

But then, Lily looked at Irene who sat beside him. She scooped two chicken wings and place it on her plate. Then, she took her knife and fork and began to slice them.

_What the hell? Who eats chicken wings with a knife and fork?_

Lily became conscious of her own state. She was still holding her own chicken wing on the right hand. Slowly, she put her chicken wing back on her plate.

_I could eat with manner too._

She grabbed her knife and fork, and slowly she tried to slice her chicken wing. It somehow stuck on the bone and so she angled her knife to the right side and stabbed it with her knife.

Clack!

Tang!

Plung!

“Lily!” Lucy and Fred yelled at her at the same time.

Lily couldn’t help but laughed instantly, “Hahahhahha, I am sorry” she chuckled again looking at the mess she created.

She knocked over her glass and the contain fell into Lucy’s plate while the chicken wing slipped and then fly into Fred’s glass.

_Damn the chicken wing!_

“What’s wrong with you, Lils” Lucy complained. Her meal was covered with chocolate milk.

“Anyone fancy a glass of pumpkin juice with chicken wing flavor?” Fred said while laughing alongside Lily.

“I am sorry Luce, here you can take my plate” Lily offered to her cousin, still laughing at her own silliness.

Hugo and Molly also momentarily joined their laugh, asking why the hell she did that.

The dinner time was as loud as usual. And Lily loved that.

She was ready for bed when it hit her like a train. There were two things she forgot to do. First, Malfoy’s handkerchief was still in her hand; she forgot to give it back to him. The grey fabric with Malfoy’s family crest and black trim around it felt soft within her palms. Lily timidly sniffed its scent, and it smelled like musk. A very calming, boyish musk that made her remember the magnificent scenery that afternoon. The smelled of the cold ground, the smelled of black lake’s water, the pines trees, grass, and the smelled of the soft afternoon wind.

The second was asking a very important question about Scorpius himself. After all, he and her brother did that stupid time travel fiasco together.

_My brother’s lungs killing him slowly. So, what’s killing **him**?_


	7. Samantha: A Batshittery from Being Too Obsessed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Scorpius looked uneasy now, “If you understand that ‘something’, I think you know what I am talking about”.
> 
> “If you think that something that I know is also something that I think you also know, I think so” Irene replied.
> 
> “What kind of nonsense are you two talking about?” Samantha asked confusedly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At first, I want to write it from the main character POV. But I thought how clueless the side characters were about the whole situation and decided that maybe I'd like to give them some shines.

\--

**Samantha**

If the idea of studying for four hours a day after dinner every day wasn’t maddening enough, her new roommate proved her wrong. Samantha once peeked out Irene’s notebook, it was full stuff that’s supposed to be learned by the sixth-year students. This new friend of hers was taking the standard of studying into a whole next joke. Not that Samantha was complaining though. For once, she had a friend who took the idea of _‘my ambition was being a great witch’_ seriously.

“I couldn’t believe none of you take Muggle Studies. I am the only Slytherin in the class! The professor was looking at me like I am an almost extinct species.” Irene said one day at breakfast.

“Oh, believe me. After one year going through Care of Magical Creature, I start to question my decision of choosing it” Samantha answered.

“It’s boring and lame, but at least you could go out in the field” Stephanie said.

“More reason to regret it”

“Hey! Don’t slander Care of Magical Creatures. It’s one of my favorites” Estelle commented.

“True, it’s exciting to interact with animals once in a while” Joyce said.

“Yup, it’s also one of my favorites too. Just because it’s the only subject which I could manage to get Outstanding” Stephanie replied.

Stephanie was going home for Easter breaks which only lasted for a week. Her grandfather was finally being released from Azkaban after thirty years in prison. They wished her luck and sent congratulations cards for her grandfather. Samantha knew Stephanie seemed rather keen to the prospect of finally getting to meet her grandfather.

Most students didn’t even care about the Easter Holiday and chose to stay at Hogwarts. In this time of the year, the fifth-year students were started to get crazy over the O.W.L, lazy quidditch practices, couples snogged here and there, and there was a lot of gossips.

They were in their room, lying down on the floor while enjoying the sheet mask Irene bought from home while discussing the hottest issue of the week: James Potter’s Bathroomgate. The news was coming from the Head Girl herself who caught the accident and spread it in the Slytherin common room with all the girls who eagerly listened and the boys who secretly listened but acted like they didn’t care.

From Samantha's perspective, it was rather unfair to attach Potter's name to the scandal. He didn't even take any part of it. He was just the reason why the scandal happened. The shenanigan was completely out of his control and those crazy girls were one hundred percent at fault. 

“How about a picnic?” Joyce suddenly suggests after they were done discussing the gossip. 

“Uuuu sounds good” Irene agreed while humming.

“I know a very good spot. You’ll love it, Irene”

“Oh yeah, where is it?”

“It’s s small meadow beside the Black Lake. But not many people visit it, though. They prefer the other one. The path to the meadow is covered by thick grasses. You’ll never notice there is a path at all from afar. But I promise you’ll like it. Credit to Estelle who found it” Joyce explained.

“Let’s invite the boys too” Irene suddenly suggested. She already has done the mask and now applying some moisturizer on her face.

Samantha’s lips twitched, forced herself not to laugh. And not much to her surprise, Joyce was chuckling,

“What?” Irene asked.

“Do you really like Albus that much?” Joyce asked.

“What do you mean?” Irene asked calmly.

“What do you think I mean is exactly what I mean”

“Meaning?” Irene rose her voice despite the blushing cheek that was hard to ignore.

“Nothing” Joyce immediately replied.

“Irene, we aren’t as smart as you are. But if there’s one thing for sure, we aren’t dumb” Samantha said.

“What does that even implied?”

Samantha acted as if she was thinking hard, “Oh umm, what I implied is that we realize the way you looking at him”

“Or in your case, _how_ _often_ you are looking at him” the quite Estelle joined the conversation.

“What are you even talking about?” Irene was fidgeting, clearly uncomfortable.

“We are talking about how during classes, you steal glances at him at least ten times” Joyce answered

“And breakfast” Samantha added

“And dinner” Joyce added again.

“Lunch and Library” Estelle ended the sentence.

“No, I don’t do that!” Irene denied.

“Deny as hard as you can, Rosier. The truth won’t change anyway” Samantha said.

“Yeah, sure!” Xavier exclaimed “Sounds fun” he added.

“So, it’s a class picnic then?” Ethan asked.

“I like it. For a long time, I want our class to bound closer together. It’s nice having a solid friendship” Julian said.

“Aye captain! Before quidditch season resume and exams come, let’s enjoy time together!” Joyce exclaimed.

The four of them asked the boys on Sunday morning about the picnic. The nine of them having breakfast together and it made a rather large group on the Slytherin table. All of them seemed genuinely interested, except for the ‘Brooding Prince’ as Samantha called him. They discussed the picnic while he was reading the newspaper with a constipated face.

Irene preferred the afternoon time and Julian suggested that they played cricket. 

“What is cricket?” Irene asked.

“It’s a muggle sport” Julian, “All we need is a small elastic ball which I could transfigure from a comb and a wooden stick to strike it”

“Ethan will be good at it” Samantha said, “American no-maj has their own counterpart of it called baseball” she added.

Their conversation turned into a discussion of the rule for cricket by Julian and its differences with baseball by Samantha. Ethan seemed really interested in it, and wonder why he never heard about it before. As a beater, the sport sounds like quidditch with more beaters as players and less flying. Joyce then brought the subjects about the foods and drinks.

“Is it a bit strange to eat the same thing as our lunch?” Ethan asked.

“What could we do? It’s not like we have many choices” Joyce replied

While they continuing the discussion about the food, Samantha noticed that Scorpius looked at Albus once in a while. Scorpius was the only one who attempted to make a conversation with him.

“Is something the matter Al?”

Albus sighed and for the first time, he looked up from the newspaper. “Another murder case. It seems people start to get themselves into the story. There was an interview here and there about it. Some people are starting to feel scared. And the Auror was getting pressed to solve the case as soon as possible. Teddy is having a hard time” he said.

“Oh, that’s rather unfortunate” Scorpius replied.

Samantha didn’t particularly hate nor like Albus very much. In a range from zero to ten, he is perfectly scored five in Samantha’s mind. It’s due to how very little she knew him for the past four years. He was a very reserved person to begin with and seems rather antisocial. That alone was already weird. His group of cousins was treated like royalty here and Merlin! Samantha knew they enjoy it to their fullest heart. Not that she blamed them, to be honest. If she was in their position, she would exactly act the way they did.

“Don’t you think it’s kind of a downfall to bring the same food and drink as lunch?” Xavier asked.

“That’s the only option we have” Joyce said once more time.

“Actually, no. I am sure there is a kitchen somewhere in here. The food couldn’t magically be made. It’s against the Gawp’s exception of elemental transfiguration” Irene said.

All of them looked at Irene’s direction at once, even Albus.

“Ga- ga Ga- exceptions of what?” Ethan asked confusedly.

“No, not important yet. But the point is, food has to be manually made. And that means, there must be a kitchen here” Irene rephrased quickly.

“Yeah, but nobody knows where the kitchen is” Julian said.

After about half a minute of silence, there was an unexpected voice answered.

“I do” Albus answered shortly

Now, all of them looked at him.

“I do know where the kitchen is” he said calmly.

“Really? Where is it, Al?” Scorpius asked. 

Albus didn’t say anything and instead, pointed his finger downward. “Down” he said shortly.

All the eight of them dumbly looked downward, following Albus’s finger.

“Beneath this hall” Albus answered.

“Go through a door in the entrance hall and taking the stairs downwards. Downstairs, in a broad stone basement corridor, tickle the pear on a painting of a bowl of fruit. The pear will giggle and turn into a large green door handle. That’s the door to the kitchen” he explained.

All of them dumbly awed at Albus’s answer, “Wooooaaaah”

“How do you know about it and I don’t?” Scorpius tease him, “I thought there’s no secret between us”.

Albus tapped one of his fingers onto a word in the newspaper, “Teddy” he answered shortly.

Turned out, they didn’t have to make the foods by themselves because there were hundreds of house-elves that were exclaimed with delight when Xavier, Samantha, and Joyce walked in. They wouldn’t stop to budge them, asked for more tasks. And that when things got a little awkward. At one point, Samantha was too bewildered by the situation and on the other point, she pitied the house-elves. Must be hard for them to maintain everything on his castle daily and continuously.

They ended up having a basket full of Choco chip cookies, caramel muffins, chocolate truffle, and fruit pies as well as two bottles of orange juice. The house-elves worked happily and chaotically while Samantha and her friends just sat down patiently on the stools, looking at the house-elves with full of awe.

They thanked the house elves and went upstairs. Their friends waited for them in front of the eastern stone gate. Samantha looked at her friends; Julian was holding a ball and a cricket stick, Estelle was holding her camera, and Irene was holding her fake happy smile.

The reason was clear, Albus wasn’t among them.

“Albus doesn’t come with us?” Samantha asked Scorpius.

He just shakes his head slowly, “Hanging out with Louis” he said quietly.

Great! It seemed that Scorpius and Irene would make a good partner in **‘My world is revolving around some prick named Albus Potter’** club. Even better, they’ll start exchanging information over the twerp pretty soon and would be mopping with Moaning Myrtle whenever Albus ignoring them. They’ll obsession over Albus would rival those pop bands hardcore fans and that was still an understatement.

Samantha rolled her eyes; she was sure Irene and Scorpius even knew how many bites of bread Albus chewed at lunch.

They arrived at the meadow and Samantha had to admit, it was really beautiful. It was really far from the castle though, no wonder only Estelle would bother to explore the area. The full scenery of the castle ground was so majestic, it made Samantha realized just how beautiful Hogwarts was. The early spring breeze brought the forest musk while the warm afternoon sky complimenting the feel of serenity.

Irene and Joyce spread the picnic mat and Julian looked for some stones to keep the mat in place. Estelle was in her own world, catching the moment and scenery through her camera when Xavier put down the basket in the middle of the mat.

“Alright snakes, let’s play some cricket!” Samantha shouted while clapped her hand.

Irene decided to teach them how to divide teams via something called _backhand or palm_. They threw either their back of hand or palm in the middle of the circle, the one who chose to show their backhands would be in one team and so the opposite.

“I’ll count” Julian announced. “Everyone’s hand on the back. 1…2…3!”

Scorpius, Xavier, Samantha, and Estelle became team palm while the rest became team backhand.

“Blonde has telepathy, huh?” Ethan teased.

That was the moment Samantha realized, all of her team members had blonde hair. “Great!”

It was their first-time playing cricket and everything was a mess. It was either someone asked in mid-round _“Do I have to run now?”, “Should I leave my post now?”_ or Julian yelled _“You couldn’t leave your post!”_ or Ethan and Scorpius strike the ball too strong and it went into the lake.

“ _Accio ball_ ” Irene pointed her wand to the lake and within some seconds, the ball got into her hand again. It was the seventh time the thing happened.

Irene’s old school advanced curriculum was pretty useful within this time around. Due to their numbers, there were only three posts and between the thick forest, a cliff, and a lake. Overall, it was really fun. Every five minutes there was something that made them laughed. And as they had predicted, Ethan instantly loves the game. Samantha never knew how funny her friends were. How they could be so carefree and happy when other people didn’t around them.

Was it the meaning of finding her true friends in her house?

After an hour or so, they finally sat down, cooling down, and enjoying the snacks. Some even lying down on the grass. Others were chatting about mundane stuff and joked around. At least Scorpius and Irene didn’t seem to look gloomy now. The afternoon sky was burning and for the first time since forever, Samantha was content and happy.

“Alright you two, it’s time to settle some things down” Samantha said to Scorpius and Irene seriously.

The three of them were currently sitting on a bench in an open corridor of the ground floor. The others were in the library, studying. After the picnic a week ago, they started to study together for the exams. Easter breaks were over tomorrow and Stephanie already came back today. Things changed within the week, time moved on, whether changed, quidditch practice resumed, fifth-year students more panic over O.W.L, and literally everything moved forward.

Everything but Scorpius and Irene. They still constantly looked at Albus as if he was this golden statue they wanted to hug all the time. And from Samantha’s experiences, things wouldn’t come out good if there were two people being too obsessed over the same person.

“What things?” Irene asked, genuinely confused.

“I don’t know. I just feel like you two need to settle things over Albus” Samantha replied.

Scorpius looked at Irene, surprised. “What?”.

They looked at each other for some time,

“Do you know what kind of look the two of you had this morning? When Louis Weasley came to our table and Albus decide to go with him?” Samantha asked

“The two of you looked like-, like something too precious for you being robbed away from you. It’s not healthy guys”.

Scorpius and Irene still stared at each other without words, leaving Samantha felt like a clueless idiot.

“You know, I do hope the two of you would settle things down and have a healthy competition over winning his heart” Samantha said things to get their attention.

“WHAT?!” They screamed at her together, at the same time.

“I LIKE GIRLS!”

“I DON’T LIKE HIM!”

The stared at her and then back to looked at each other again. There was a time of silence and finally, Scorpius asked Irene,

“Do you know something?”

“Depend on the ‘something’” Irene answered.

Scorpius looked uneasy now, “If you understand that ‘something’, I think you know what I am talking about”.

“If you think that something that I know is also something that I think you also know, I think so” Irene replied.

“What kind of nonsense are you two talking about?” Samantha asked confusedly.

“How do you know?” Scorpius asked Irene, ignoring Samantha altogether.

“Let’s just say-” Irene sighed, “coincidence”.

The looked at one another and having this whole silent conversation, ignoring Samantha's existence. 

“Do you want to find him now?” Irene asked Scorpius

“He always disappears in this time around. But I think I know some clue” Scorpius answered.

“What the hell are you two talking about?!” Samantha frustrated.

If people asked Samantha what things she would never do- and it’s even better for her to be tortured with cruciatus curse to the insanity that doing it- was the thing she did right now, stalking. Scorpius, Irene, and her were currently standing, hiding behind some big arches, gawking at Albus and Louis Weasley. The two of them were standing on the other side of the corridor, talking. And of course, the three of them couldn’t even hear what the heck did they talked about.

“This is ridiculous! Completely, utterly, ridiculous” Samantha muttered, “This isn’t right. We looked like a true stalker”.

“Suuuuuusssh” the two of them shushed Samantha.

_Oh God, give me mercy._

Albus was currently bidding Louis Weasley a _see you tomorrow_. Louis walked into the direction of the main corridor while Albus walked the other way. Scorpius and Irene silently followed Albus after they made sure Louis wasn’t there anymore. Samantha rolled her eyes for the nth times that day, but still followed the two of them. Scorpius looked from the corner of the wall to see which corridor Albus took next. And they followed him again.

_This obsession will not come out well._

“You know, we are currently standing on the corridor which people take to get in and out of the back yard. If someone sees us, I bet they’ll question us”

“They will not. We are literally just standing” Irene answered.

“Exactly! Why the hell a group of people will stand on a corridor where there’s literally nothing around” Samantha

“Oh, come on Samantha. No one will-”

“Hey Scorpius! What’s up!” Someone called Scorpius

They instantly turned around. The person coming to their direction would be the last person they wanted to meet right now. He wore a maroon jumpsuit and a black pair of black jeans. He carried his famous broomstick on his right hand, walking through the corridor while the wind blowing his already unkempt hair and made them even messier.

James Potter.

The Prince Charming a.k.a the main subject of this week’s hottest gossip himself decided to grace them with his presence while they were in the middle of following his brother. Great! Super fantastic.

Samantha meant it with her heart.

At least she knew, James coming at them was marking the end of their stalking activity. And after this, Samantha swore she would tell Julian and the others about it so that Irene and Scorpius could have their ears reaped off for the lecture they would be given.

Eventually, James stood up in front of them. Scorpius sighed and Irene turned her eyes somewhere other than to James. Samantha could smell the musk coming from the boy who was standing beside her; they were the mixture of sweat, earth, grass, and the afternoon spring.

_I could understand why those girls fight over him_

“What’s up Scorp, how are you?” James casually asked him.

“Oh, Hai James. I- I am quite alright” Scorpius answered nervously.

“Great. So, where is my brother? I don’t see him around here”

“Um- I don’t know. He’s not with us” Scorpius answered.

James looked genuinely confused, “You aren’t with my brother? Do you have a fight with him or something?”

“What? N-No. It’s just… em- I am hanging out with these two” Scorpius nudged his head toward Samantha and Irene.

James looked at Samantha and she looked back at him. Then, his eyes drifted to Irene. He studied her from head to toe,

“Not to be rude, but it seemed that I never know you. What year are you in?” he asked Irene.

Irene scratched her hand, “Fourth” she answered shortly

“Really? I never know you are in my brother’s year. What’s your name? I am Albus’s brother, James Potter” he extended his hand toward Irene.

“I am Irene, Irene Rosier” she shakes James’s hand, “I just moved in this semester” she explained.

“Pleasure to meet you, Irene”

There was an awkward silence going on, either for them or James. Samantha looked at him and she could saw how troubled he was. Was it due to the whole bathroom fiasco? She wasn’t sure. But she was sure that he wasn’t as cheerful and confident as he normally looked. Not that Samantha looked at him that much, to begin with.

“Do you need something, Potter?” Samantha asked James.

“Oh no, I just came back from flying and saw Scorpius as I step in. I just want to check on Scorpius” he answered.

“Check on Scorpius?” Samantha asked with confusion, “Why?”

“He is my brother’s friend, is he not? All of you are Albus’s friends, of course I’d like to know” he answered.

“Riiiiight” Samantha felt unsure how to answer.

_James Potter is a horrible actor_

“So, how are you doing Scorpius? What are you doing here?” James asked Scorpius.

“Emm, just hanging out with them” Scorpius replied.

“It’s rather an unusual choice of place to hang out, don't you think?” James said.

_Scorpius sucks at lying_

“Ummm yeah. It- it’s amm” Scorpius looked at his friends,

Now, Samantha knew that this very rare moment with big bro Potter might lead to a serious situation. And no, she didn’t want to be in any part of it when the bomb hit them in the face. So, she just crossed her arms in front of her chest. It’s a signal to both of her friends; she wouldn’t take part in this batshittery.

“We are actually looking for my kitten” Irene suddenly said.

“Kitten?”

“Yeah. I am worried about him; he never leaves the dungeon. It’s the first time he’d gone and he’s still so little” Irene explained. She had a somewhat somber expression on her face.

_Irene is a sucker at lying._

“Oh, cat business is tricky. Once, my cousin Molly’s cat gone for three days. Everyone was frantic and worried, Molly cried days and nights. In needed twelve people to look after her. Turned out, she got a boyfriend and was in mating season, they stayed on the roof in those three days” James answered.

“Hahahaha, that’s funny” Irene replied with a fake laugh.

“I know right!” James said with fake enthusiasm.

Samantha wanted to face-palmed herself. There wasn’t going to be something good that came out of it.

“So, yeah. If you don’t have any more questions, we’d like to continue our search. Have a nice day James” Scorpius said, eager to get rid of James.

“Oh come on Scorpius, do you really believe I will let you search for a kitten with just these two? I’ll help!” James exclaimed.

Samantha learned that James Potter was good at getting what he wanted without being so obvious. He didn’t approach them because he just wanted to check on Scorpius as he claimed.

He was suspicious of them.

“Ummm, I think that’s not necessary” Irene said.

“Nonsense! The more people in the search party, the better!” James said.

“Right, let’s get Potter in. I am sure we’ll find your _kitten_ faster, Irene” Samantha suddenly said.

Scorpius and Irene looked disbelieve at Samantha. She just smirked and admitted silently that she was indeed playing with them.

“Okay then, let’s search for him” Irene said.

“Great! Let’s start it” Samantha replied with fake enthusiasm.

Irene rolled her eyes at Samantha.

The four of them pretended to search for Irene’s kitten which Samantha knew currently lying in one of Slytherin common room couches. Irene’s kitten Michi liked dark places, and coming to the upper ground doesn’t seem to be his preferred activity. 

The search went quite comedic in Samantha’s opinion. They would call Michi’s name here and there and just checking random classrooms with occasionally peeking out through the ground. At this point, Samantha was sure James knew that they lied to him but still got along the game because he wanted to get stories about his brother from them.

What James didn’t know was that each answer coming from them was also lies. Scorpius didn’t say much, knowing James would saw through his lies. Samantha had to admit, Irene was truly a master of lying. She dodged James's questions flawlessly when they became too personal and detail regarding her view on his brother. And like a pattern, it went on and on.

After sometimes, they were frustrated over James and James also became impatient to them. This game of dodging questions and lying was taking too long.

“Alohomora!” Irene exclaimed, opened a random classroom.

They peeked out of the room, “Nothing’s here too” Samantha said.

“Yeah. Should we just stop?” she asked.

“Come on, don’t give up. Let’s search for another corridor. We haven’t checked the corner corridor near the west door. There is an armory with a lot of open windows there. Your cat could get in from outside” James answered.

“Wah, you sure know a lot about this castle” Irene played along again.

They began to walk with James and Irene leading the way. They actually have a conversation with him along the walk, although most of them circled around Albus. James seemed really eager to know everything about his brother, while Irene and Scorpius seemed desperately trying to hide something from James about Albus. Samantha played alongside her friends, obviously.

“Wow, there’s only one room in this whole corridor” Irene said.

“Yup! The armory takes this whole corridor. It’s really big but also super packed with things”

They were in front of the door and Samantha tried to open the door. It’s locked.

“It’s locked” she announced.

“It’s never been locked” James said confidently.

“Try for yourself then” Samantha asked James.

“Right. It’s locked” James said after trying it himself, “ _Alohomora_ ” he pointed the door lock.

It’s still locked.

“It’s locked with a strong spell” Irene said.

“Strange. Whenever I visit it, it’s never been locked this way”

“What the hell do you visit the armory for?” Samantha asked

James scratched behind his neck, “You know…” he unsure how to answer, “entertainment with other people”

_It means snogging or other things. Truly, The Prince Charming_

Then, it clicked to them at the same time. They smirked to each other and James cast another unlocking charm. It didn’t work.

“Weeeee! What kind of secret lies behind; I wonder?!” Samantha said at loud.

“Must be a very important one!” James joined in.

“Would all of you want to know?!”

“Of course, I do! It must be a very thrilling secret!”

All of them chuckled. Sure enough, whoever inside the armory would hear them.

“Let’s make it simple, will you?” Samantha said, “Excuse me” she positioned herself right in front of the door.

“ _BOMBARDA_!” Samantha exclaimed, blasted the door of the armory.

BOOM!

Clang!

Clang!

Clang!

The door pieces knocked inside, made the clacking noise of falling metal. The grin on their face before they opened the door forcefully slowly changed when they looked at the scene right in front of their sight.

Allan Jefferson was helping a girl getting out of the armory through one of the windows by holding her hands. The girl, unfortunately, was still trying to climb the said window. Both of their hair was messy and only God knew what thing they just did before they heard Samantha and James. The evidence of their _lovely_ activities however, couldn’t be more apparent. The girl’s shirt hadn’t been properly buttoned up while Allan’s T-shirt was a complete mess.

The ones who shocked the most right now were James and the girl. They looked at each other with the same shock and horror expression on each of their face. Time suddenly stopped there; the girl was still on top of the window sill with Allan’s arm holding hers. Irene, Scorpius, and Samantha were silent, too awkward to say anything.

“Hai Roxanne” James finally said something, although his expression was blank and never looked away from her.

“Hai James” Roxanne Weasley answered with the same flat tone and looked never away from James. 

\--

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What is James Potter’s Bathroomgate? See you on next chapter.


	8. James: A Clusterfuck of Horrible Comedies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Roxanne sighed, “But it’s not going for long. Our graduation was just months away from now and our freedom would begin after that” she smiled.
> 
> James snorted, “Freedom sounds like a very soft looking chocolate ball, only then to find out there were pieces of annoying nuts inside it,” he said, “Like hell you’ll ever get a smooth way of swallowing it”.

\--

James Potter just had the worst week in his Hogwarts life. All the horrible things he never thought would come to him happened within that year’s Easter break. As the majority of the students chose to stay at school, so was he. Had James knew what would happen during that week, he would pack his trunk and joined Molly and Lucy boarded the train to The Burrow to enjoy his grandma’s meal every single day. But no, he didn’t and God, he paid the price.

On Monday, there was a fight broke in a girl’s lavatory. Sixth-year Gryffindor Amelia Mayers started a series of a hair-pulling fight with sixth-year Ravenclaw Claire Thomas. The reason? Oh yeah, the reason was that Thomas’s mad for something Mayers said. She testified that Mayers bragged to other girls about getting a heart shape chocolate box from a guy on Valentine’s day. Mayers said to the girls that the guy seemed to like her very much and maybe soon, he would ask her out. So, she said that the other girls should back off of him.

Thomas then responded that she had no chance when it came to the said guy because her own chance was definitely higher than Mayers. First, the guy stole glances at her from time to time since last year. Second, their parents were close friends. Third, they already kissed under mistletoe at last year’s Christmas eve. Those remarks were enough to start the fight.

The hair-pulling fight said to include not just Mayers and Thomas but four other girls. Amid the fierce fight, the Head Girl, seventh-year Slytherin Nayla Sharron came in. For the next hour, all of the girls were brought to McGonagall’s office for questioning.

Fourth-year Hufflepuff Karl Jenkins was coincidently chosen as the messengers of the apocalypse. He approached James at lunch and said that he was called to the headmistress’s office.

“What for?” James asked the boy, not convinced even one bit

He bit his lip, “Something about a fight”

“And… Who was fighting?”

“Some people you absolutely know. I suggest you quickly go there, everyone is waiting” he answered, “Brace yourself, Potter. Professor McGonagall sounds really pissed off” he added.

“…”

The moment James went into McGonagall’s office, there were eight pairs of eyes stared at him. Sharron was standing in the far end of the office, while there were six other girls standing right in front of McGonagall’s desk. Their hair was tangled and some of their eyes were red.

“Ah, Mr. Potter. You are finally here. Come closer, please” Professor McGonagall said.

He walked toward the center of the room and standing in front of the round table. He avoided getting closer, as the six girls were all standing there.

“Do you need something from me, Professor?”

“Yes, I do Mr. Potter” she answered, “You see, we have a little bit of a situation here. As I am sure, you know all these… ‘ _ **brave and intelligent girls’**_ ” said McGonagall in which James knew was a sarcastic remark.

“I- I do, Professor. They are my-” James answered.

For the love of Gryffindor! The stares from the girls made James felt like if he did say something wrong, they’ll immediately mutilate and skewered him.

“- classmates”.

“Yes, they do. All of you here- except for Ms. Sharron back there- is the sixth-year students of Hogwarts who I am very much sure, know the art of mannerism and the feeling of responsibilities” Professor McGonagall said in a sarcastic voice again.

“And so, Mr. Potter. I am sure you’ll agree to cooperate and being honest to me in order to know the truth and solve the problem, will you not?” she asked.

“Y-yeah, sure Professor” James answered as he knew that his headmistress was just a ‘no option’ request except for a ‘yes’.

“Great! Now, to solve the problem one of the things, unfortunately, we have to do was matching and arranging the one true narrative”

“Right”

“All these girls have told their side of stories and this is where you come in. We need to confirm some of the things that have been said”

“Emm, what is it have to do with me, Professor?”

The Professor just smiled faintly to James, “You will understand by the very end. Just answer my questions, will you Mr. Potter?”

“Sure, I will” James replied.

“Now, first question. Did you or did you not stare at Ms. Thomas during the Halloween feast last year for more than ten seconds and hinting a desire to flirt with her?” Professor McGonagall asked in a very monotonous tune and clearly bored and just want to disappear rather than dealing with the nonsense.

He could feel he was about to get murdered by the stares and could hear Sharron snorted, probably tried her best not to laugh for the stupid scene that was just happened in front of her.

“Excuse me?”

The news of the fight was blown over to the whole school in the span of a night. And if people thought that the actual facts weren’t exaggerated enough, the rumors said various versions of the stories from the mild that said he accidentally got into the wrong bathroom and the girls tried to kiss him but ended up fought each other, to the mediocre imagination that said he unleashed some failed flirting spell to Thomas and ended up bumping into other girls, to the horrible perverts' joke that said he would give the winner of the fight his virginity right in the freaking bathroom. 

First, he did kiss Thomas. But that was only because they were trapped under the mistletoe, in which James felt he was tricked by Thomas to stand there in the first place. Second, he did not give Mayers chocolates. Whoever gave those chocolates either tried to pull a prank on James or wanted to trick Mayers with a love potion and failed. When he testified his side of the story, both girls became equally pissed off of him for some deranged reason.

When people said things about him, he could brush it off like it was nothing. But on Wednesday’s breakfast, he bumped into his younger brother at the Great Hall. To James’s surprise, Albus wore his Christmas sweater. The delicate black Snake embroidery curling around the big silver ‘A’ letter on the front of the deep emerald sweater while some crimson carnations lying beneath the letter. It was really neat and beautiful. James could swear it was probably the best sweater his grandmother ever made.

“Nice sweater Al” James said to his brother.

Albus didn’t immediately answer James, instead looked at him straight to his eyes for some time. He then said in a very monotone voice, “Must be nice, isn’t it? To be fought over”

“Father and Mother must be so proud”.

His brother wasn’t even waiting for him to answer his words and just walked away to the Slytherin table, joining his friends. 

_Not you too…_

After that, he ended up locking himself in the Gryffindor tower.

Then, Thursday came and Finnigan called for quidditch practice. If there was a moment when James cursed himself for being a prefect instead of the quidditch captain, it was that very moment. Mike Finnigan had a crush on Claire Thomas and refused to believe that she didn’t like him back. And according to his horrible logic, that was James’s fault.

Throughout the practice, he yelled at James and always find things to criticize him with;

“YOU FLY TOO SLOW!”

“YOUR MANEUVER WAS SHIT! THE MOST HORRIBLE BEATER IN HISTORY WOULD BEAT YOU TO PULP IN SECOND!”

“THE GOLDEN SNITCH WAS RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOUR EYES!”

“DO YOU WANT SLYTHERIN TO BEAT US THIS YEAR?!”

“ACCRINGTON WOULD TAKE YOU DOWN IN TEN SECONDS!”

James had enough mid practice and left the pitch altogether. He could hear Rose screamed, tried to get him back,

“Jameeeeees!”

But he couldn’t do it. He had enough of this bullshit.

And then, Saturday came and James decided to clear his head. He flew for some hours and on his way to the castle, he saw Scorpius and two Slytherin girls acted weirdly. As much as he knew that Scorpius was an innocent sweet lad, he still wanted to know what the heck did they do in the middle of an empty hallway. 

And to James’s misery, his stress level that week had its cherry on top; he just discovered that his beloved cousin Roxanne was dating, snogging, and banging Allan Jefferson, the Slytherin quidditch captain.

He sat down with Roxanne afterward at Astronomy tower and she ended up told him the full story. From the moment where they annoyed each other to stolen glances during classes to love confession in the middle of the night. She told him how sweet Jefferson was, how he never raised his voice and very patient with her.

“Even if you insulted him in every quidditch match commendatory?”

Roxanne chuckled and smiled, “It was our inside joke. Sometimes we even couldn’t believe that nobody picks a hint on how well I know him through my commendatory”

James pursed his lips, “Well, your acting was convincing”

“Both of ours are. He never tells anyone too” Roxanne said softly, “it’s a relationship of only ours and ours alone”.

“Why keeping it a secret, though?” James asked.

Roxanne looked at him as if his question was the dumbest words ever coming out of a human. James nodded, understood her situation. Their family, particularly Roxanne’s was not that good at handling the past. The ghost of war and dark wizards were still haunting Uncle George until now. And Jefferson’s relatives were one of them.

Roxanne sighed, “But it’s not going for long. Our graduation was just months away from now and our freedom would begin after that” she smiled.

James snorted, “Freedom sounds like a very soft looking chocolate ball, only then to find out there were pieces of annoying nuts inside it,” he said, “Like hell you’ll ever get a smooth way of swallowing it”.

Roxanne raised one of her eyebrows, “We kept our relationship a secret for three years, without nobody ever finds out about it, without one of our tongues ever slipped in. You really underestimate our planning ability, aren’t you?”

“What does that even mean?”

Roxanne looked at the sky, “Do you know that I’ve got an internship in MACUSA? Well, Allan’s too. We actually applied together” she giggled, “Our adventure will begin there”.

James's eyes went wide and suddenly turned his head at Roxanne, “No way!”

“Yes, way. And also…” her hands reached something around her neck. It was a golden necklace with a white gold ring in it.

“NO WAY!!” James screamed.

Roxanne smirked, “I am going to tell you once again James. We really think this through, there’s plan A, plan B, plan C, and so on”.

“Do-don't you think it’s too soon, Roxanne?” James stammered, “I- I mean, how about us? About Uncle George? Freddie? Aunt Angelina? Grandma and Grandpa? And everyone?!”

Roxanne turned her head to him and smiled. She spoke so sweetly and so softly, “I am sure one day they will understand. And no James, it’s not too soon. Both of us realize that we are the best for each other. And I am sure, what I felt, what both of us felt-”

“-is true love. And true love is never too soon-”

“-or too late” she ended her speech.

James was lost at words, turned his head, and look at the bright blue sky. He never imagined that the bubbly and cheerful Roxanne was such a romantic and serious person.

“Why?” James asked quietly, “Why are you so sure?”

There was a long silence before Roxanne answered,

“Honestly, I don’t know. I just do, I believe in him. My whole life, I’ve lived constantly with jokers and pranksters. I could tell whenever someone lies to me or want to joke with me”

“So, I think there is a part of me where I want someone to treat me seriously. Not a single joke, not a single lie, just treat me seriously and true”

“It’s a nice feeling, to be treated seriously. To have the same goal in life with someone you love, to look at each other and meet his eyes, to-”

“Okay okay! I get it” James cut her, “Geez Roxanne, who knows that you are such a hopeless romantic girl who could spit some bull crap about love” he sighed,

Roxanne laughed, “Oh James, you say that because you are jealous of us!”

James eyed Roxanne as if she was going insane, “Jealous?! Of Jefferson? Pfft, you wish!”

“I am James Potter for crying at loud! I am much much more popular than him, boys and girls like me, I am smart, and I am a much better seeker than him!”

Roxanne smiled, “Are you truly could say that confidently after what just happen this week?”

James couldn’t answer her on that one. She nailed it on the head.

“Also, just so you know Allan doesn’t really care about quidditch”

“Then why the hell he-”

“He became the seeker because no one in Slytherin gives a damn about it. He even accepted the captain position because three people rejected it and he took pity on Professor Sherburn”

James rolled his eyes, “Yeah right, for someone who doesn’t care about quidditch, he sure did a lot of work to try winning the match”

“He is just trying his best upon the responsibilities that fall upon him, James” Roxanne answered.

James sighed, feeling betrayed. He thought that all these years he won the cup for Gryffindor because he was the best among the best. Turned out, some people just not really into it as much as he did and couldn’t care less about the match’s outcome.

It hurt his pride.

“Oh James, I hope one day you could find your true love. And when that time comes, you have the bravery to take hold of it. Just as I do” Roxanne smiled brightly at James.

Turned out, James really took Roxanne’s words to his deepest heart. He never thought about getting a partner just yet. His life was fulfilling enough and being single was part that made it the way it was. He had to admit that sometimes he flirts here and there, but the Bathroomgate- as to how people like to call it- gave James a different perspective. He had enough of it.

“JAMES!”

A loud cry startled him from his daydream.

It was his thirteen years old cousin, Fred. Roxanne’s younger brother.

James sighed, just seconds ago his sister’s words mentally bugged him and now her brother physically bugged him. “What’s up Freddie?” he asked his cousin.

“You coming for dinner?” Fred asked.

James got quite for a while, “No, I don't want to think about going to the Great Hall right now”.

Fred huffed, “Come on James, you can’t mop around because of some stupid gossip!”

“It’s not a gossip Fred, it’s a fact” James replied, “I mean about the fight, not anything else” he quickly added.

“It will go down and people will shut up about it in no time”

“Still…” James sighed for the hundred times that day.

“Well, let’s not eat in the Great Hall then,” Fred said.

James forced himself to get up from the chair, “Alright” he replied.

The two of them heading to the Kitchen, careful to make sure there were no one saw them when they tickled the pear. The painting of the bowl of fruits transformed itself into the green door which James had seen tens or even hundreds of times.

He and Fred get in and by the time they were walking down the stairs, James could hear a distant voice.

“No, you can’t-”

“Yeah, thank you-”

“No more-”

By the time the get down to the kitchen hall, the most unexpected things greet James right in his face. Two people whom James very familiar with were having a conversation. One was a human and the other was a house-elf.

His cousin Louis was the human and Kreacher was the house-elf.

James's bad mood went down to level negative one hundred as he saw Louis’s annoying Christmas sweater. The supposed to be lion embroidered on the front of the sweater was really ugly and for God's sake! The color was just so wrong.

Both of them turned their head toward James and Fred’s direction, and both of them looked like they just meet a living Voldermort. Both of their eyes were going round and that made Kreacher’s eyes looked like they would fall out of their socket.

“H-Hai James, Fred” Greeted Louis.

“M- Ma- Master James” Kreacher said.

“Hai Lou, Hai Kreacher” replied Fred without any remorse, “God! I am hungry” he said while walking down and then surrounded by the other house-elves, asking what they can do for him.

“The hell happens here?” James asked the two

“I- I am here because I want to eat and I meet Kreacher here. And we had a chit chat” Louis answered, “I am hungry too by the way” he added immediately while quickly walking away and sat to one of the stools beside Fred.

“Why are you here Kreacher?” James walked to Kreacher’s direction.

Kreacher looked down, “Mmmm Kreacher is- vis- visiting a friend”

“And who is that friend?” James asked calmly.

There were hundreds of questions inside of his head right now. But there were enough stresses and drama for this week already and the last thing he needed was a batshittery pulled by his own house-elf and cousin.

“Wi-winky” he answered while looking at the floor.

_That’s a lie_

“You come here to visit Winky?” he asked again.

“Y-yes Master” 

“Any particular occasion?”

Kreacher got silent for some time, “Kreacher is lonely” he answered.

“Did mother or father know about this?”

“O-of course. Master Harry let Kreacher visiting Hogwarts anytime Kreacher wants”

_That wasn’t a lie_

James wasn’t sure to let it slipped yet, but his analytical mind was too tired to think about some house-elf drama.

Kreacher suddenly looked up to him, “Do you need something, Master?” he asked.

“Yeah” he replied shortly,

“Chickens and eggs”.

Louis, Fred, and James eat in one of the kitchen’s counter in peace. He wanted to ask questions to Louis but knew that it wasn’t the right time. And to be quite frank, the moment his meals touched his tongue, he realized just how hungry he was. He didn’t even realize whether Kreacher was still in the kitchen or already disapparated back home.

The three of them chatted about many mundane things, from the letters that came from their family to Louis’s upcoming O.W.L.

“Don’t be nervous Lou, you'll doing great just like your sisters” Fred commented.

“I was beginning to think that I’ll never meet their expectation” Louis replied.

Everyone in the family knew just how gifted with brilliant minds were Uncle Bill’s family. He himself got twelve O.W.L., Vicky got ten and Dom got eleven. And on top of that, they got this freaking Veela blood that made their face so damn gorgeous. God!

“Don’t worry Lou, you’ll do well” James reassured, “Just don’t stick into the difficult questions for too long, especially transfiguration. That was hell”.

James suddenly remembered how stressful was last year to him. He did survive with nine O.W.L though. More than his father’s and definitely had much more Outstanding than his mother’s.

“This year is hell” Louis muttered,

“This week is hell” James muttered.

Fred sighed, “It seemed that everyone wasn’t had their best days for a while” he said, “have you guys heard from Teddy?” he asked.

James and Louis shake their head.

“The murders are continuing. He is getting pressured a lot and the Auror Department gets so much backlash from the public” Fred told them.

Now, James wasn’t an asshole, he had empathy and all that stuff. But now wasn’t the best time to care about the murder series of some old folks. He got other important things to think about.

“Not to be rude or anything Fred, I truly want to feel sorry for Teddy and those people. But that was the least of my problem right now” James replied

Fred wanted to say something, but Louis got the chance first. “The solution to your problem is actually simple, James” the blonde said.

James's face shot out to Louis and then lazily asked, “Oh, please enlighten me, Louis. How to make some girls know their place, how to make your quidditch captain realize how stupid he is, how to make other people not step into your personal space, and for god sake! How to live in peace?!”

Louis’s face was composed and calm, “Honestly James, those problems literally could be solved with a single solution”

“Yeah?”

“Get a girlfriend” Louis answered calmly.

James and Fred looked at Louis. _That was the dumbest words Louis had ever said to the date._

“That’s actually a great idea, James” Fred commented.

James looked at Fred. _That was the dumbest words Fred had ever said to the date._

“Think about it, James. If you have a girlfriend, Finnigan would stop blaming you over Thomas’s feeling for you and the girls would back off” Louis said.

“And the most important thing is, you could really focus on quidditch” Fred added, “It would be stupid if you and Finnigan’s row make Gryffindor loses the cup this year”

“Fred, it’s more than just quidditch” Louis replied.

“Yeah! I get it Lou, seriously. But, quidditch is super important!” Fred said, “The girl has to be strong, though. Because I am sure, she’ll get tons of hate from other girls” he added.

“I agree with Fred. She has to have strong characters and resilience to match yours”

“Someone who doesn’t care if she is hated by other people” said Fred

“Someone who doesn’t necessarily want to outshine you but also doesn’t get pressured by being with you” replied Louis.

“Someone who makes people think ‘I don’t want to mess myself up with her’, kind of girl” Fred gave his opinion again.

“Preferably, someone who isn’t popular too. It will be a lot more comfortable for both of you”

“Wait, isn’t that kind of contradicting, Lou? Someone strong is usually popular” Fred asked

“Not really” Louis replied

“Someone who has strong characters outshines other people’s characters, though. Hence, popularity” Fred argued

“What? No! There are so many strong people that don’t get popular” Louis bantered

“How could that be? Isn’t that mean they don’t have resilience?”

“No, Freddie. Resilience isn’t linear with popularity. It’s shown when someone-”

Louis didn’t get to finished his word because James slapped his hands onto Fred and Louis’s mouth, silenced them at once. He didn’t need to hear his cousins argue about unimportant bullshit in front of him right now.

He pulled his hands and sighed again, “Let’s just pretend this conversation didn’t happen”

“You know we are right” Fred commented.

James rolled his eyes, “How about rather than talk about my shitty week, let’s talk about Teddy’s work. Maybe it will cheer me up” he said.

James and Louis turned their head to Fred.

The youngest boy shook his head, “Not good either. Have you guys read today’s evening Prophet?” he asked the older boys.

Both of them shook their head,

“The last murder was in Hogsmeade. The landlord who owns Madam Puddifoot’s building was dead. One hundred percent chance, our Hogsmeade trips are canceled and I guarantee, there would be a new security protocol for all of us. And also, tons of backlash to Uncle Harry. Be prepared, Weasleys, and Potters!” Fred said.

SHIT!

That’s worse news than his shitty week.

“Should we go back talk about your potential girlfriend, James?” Louis asked

“Kreacher! You still here?” said James suddenly.

CRACK!

Kreacher appeared beside James’s stool, “Is there anything can Kreacher do to you, Master James?”

James said with a flat tone, “Find me a girlfriend”

“Huh?”

To his own surprise, James did think about ending his misery by getting himself a girlfriend. It’s been a month since then, the talk about the so-called Bathroomgate fight was over and changed to the talk about murderers and terrors. There were seven more people got murdered since the first one in Knockturn Alley. The Hogsmeade trips were indeed canceled and there were these tight protocols of security; no wondering around the castle ground after sundown, no leaving the dormitories after nine, no outdoor class for Divination, no forest class for Care of Magical Creature and definitely more and more patrols for prefects.

Sometimes, those patrols made James dozed off during breakfast and sleep tight during classes.

But that didn’t mean the quidditch matches were canceled.

So, here he was. Thinking about getting a girlfriend among the crowd of his friends while watching Slytherin destroying Hufflepuff. The match became boring in the middle of it because Accrington already took down Hufflepuff’s seeker. The match continued with the game for chasers and waiting for Jefferson to get the snitch.

_Someone really has to take that bloody Accrington down before he could take me down in final._

_That is if we win against Ravenclaw next week. With the captain being an asshole to his own seeker, the chance is devastating. Teddy once said, “No brilliant teamwork, no wins against Ravenclaw”._

“And now, Jefferson turned his head right and left, left and right like a granny in the traffic light!”

James rolled his eyes. The whole pitch was laughing at Roxanne’s joked about Allan.

_Someone should give her the trophy for the actress of the year_

“Look! The Hufflepuff chaser Karl Jenkins got the quaffle and tried his best to raise the score for his team!”

“That’s it, dude! We wouldn’t be going down without a fight!”

“Oh! he scores! Seventy to ninety for Hufflepuff!”

The whole pitch gave applause, James included.

“God damn it, Jefferson! Do you have dirt in your eyes or something!”

“It’s been twenty minutes since Accrington took down Hanks! How could you even qualified to be a seeker?!” Roxanne continuing her talking through the mic.

Then, everyone booed Jefferson.

_If only they knew_

Five more minutes and Jefferson flew across the pitch. James could saw a glitching light beside one of the towers and that’s where Jefferson flew to. That was the moment that James knew the match would end.

“Jefferson finally catches the snitch, Slytherin wins!” Roxanne announced.

James and his friends walked to the castle while chatting about the match. They told James to really be careful when the match with Slytherin came. From outside, James didn’t show any hint of uncertainty. Inside, the debate about his situation still went on.

“Your brother and Cortez really need to step up their game if they want to beat Slytherin’s beaters,” said one of James’s friends, Noah Spinnet.

“No kidding! Accrington is really good. Someone needs to knock him off before he could knock James off” replied Richard Jackson.

The discussion went on without the object of their conversation even paid attention. James still walking alongside them, as if he heard their conversation attentively.

But the truth was, he was watching the group of students who were walking slightly ahead of them. Albus and his friends; there were eight of them, boys and girls walking together. Among them were James’s _companions_ of finding Roxanne and Allan's attempt to run from the armory.

_Well, I imagine Jeffer- no, Allan has been talked to them too_

Sometimes, James was truly jealous of Albus. His younger brother got Scorpius who would gladly take a curse and hex for him. He got to enjoy quiet, peaceful school life without stupid girls and boys pestering him around. He didn’t have to constantly hear people telling him some impossible flying technique to catch the freaking snitch.

_And all his female classmates were-_

Oh Godric!

Oh Godric!

**OH GODRIC!**

Oh! In the name of that’s all holy and noble!

He just got an idea!

“FUCK YOU!”

“FUCK YOU JAMES POTTER!”

“Fuck you! Fuck your brother! Fuck your father! You mother! You sister! Your entire Wimble Potty Family! Fuck the preacher who wed your parents! And Fuck the God for created a fucking arrogant and spoiled fucker like you!”

James stared at the girl amusedly. She had been screaming and cursing at him for three whole minutes straight without stopping to even catch her breath.

“I don’t quite catch the idea. Is that mean a ‘yes’ or a ‘no’?”

“FUCK YOU!” she screamed again

The girl approached James while he was leaning on the armory’s window sill. She stood up straight in front of him and pulled a fist of his uniform, forced him to stumble upon her. His black eyes were only inches from her round, brown ones.

“I maybe not as high and mighty as you. My parents aren’t some saints who are worshipped by thousands of stupid people. And I definitely not as likable as you”

“But I have respect and love for myself. And that means I will never- in a million years agree to become your whore” she said venomously.

“I never said anything about a whore”

“Oh yeah, that’s true. You didn’t say the damn word” the girl said, “How noble” she said sarcastically.

“But the essence is still the same. You want to use me” the girl said quietly and sternly.

“I am not going to _use_ you” he replied

“You want me to be your **_fake_ _girlfriend_** just so that you could shoo those idiots away from your life and fix bazillions of the problems you have. That. Is. Using. Me!”

The idea came like an epiphany. One moment he was in the deepest of hell and a moment after that he felt like everything could be solved easily. It was true. Louis’s advice was actually great. He needed a girlfriend; someone who could shove other annoying people away from him, someone who could give other people the idea that he didn’t like particular persons, someone who could literally make his life easier.

**But!**

That idea didn’t necessarily true, though. He didn’t need a girlfriend. He just needed a _**figure**_ of a girlfriend. Someone with a strong character and resilience, someone who didn’t give a damn if other people hated her, someone who wasn’t popular, and someone who definitely didn’t get pressured by who he was.

All of those requirements combined with her ranting and strong venomous talks for the last three minutes ago proved that the girl was the perfect candidate. With all the things that happened to him last month, his brief meeting, and interactions with his brothers’ friends as well as Roxanne and Allan’s secret relationship, the idea was so clear and solid.

He even already planned their _relationship history_ cover-up! 

“Oh please, let me explained it to you once again. I swear! I am not going to use you!” he made a V sign with his right hand.

It was rather hard to talk when your face was only inches from your partner. And now that James could see it clearly, she was actually very beautiful. Her round brown eyes made James remember the vast wilderness of nature.

The girl raised her eyebrows, “Said that to those idiots. They would appreciate your bullshit more than I do”

“Alright, if you want to put it that way,” James said, “But hey! You could use me too!”

The girl scoffed, “You are a useless piece of junk and irrelevant for my life, James Potter”

“Oooou, you hurt my heart,” he said teasingly

The girl made a disgusted face, “I’ll just pretend this conversation never happens. Goodbye!” she said while releasing her hold of James’s uniform.

She turned around and walked away from him and the window sill. The same window sill on which James caught Roxanne and Allan. He watched the girl approached the perfectly repaired armory door, the one she blasted a month ago.

Her waist-long, silk blonde hair was swaying as she walked and with every step. And James quickly stopped her by grabbing her wrist the moment she opened the door. He closed the door and caused a loud bang.

James grabbed her shoulders and turned her body to him. He crouches a little bit so that their eyes could meet with one another,

“Let me explain once more, please” James finally pleaded,

“I promised I will not be using you and treated you like a piece of junk, Samantha” he said softly and quietly to her

Samantha looked at James’s eyes and he looked at hers. At that moment, for brief seconds, James was drunk and lost within those round brown eyes of a girl named Samantha Burke.

\-- 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These last two chapters were fun to write. But from now on, the story would super be super focused on the main characters. See you in the next chapter ^.^.


	9. Irene: Broken Bonds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Enigma.
> 
> Albus Potter was an enigma to Irene.
> 
> And that’s what drove her into him more and more.

**Irene**

\--

Irene couldn’t help herself and glances at Albus for the nth times that day, it was like an automatic movement and reaction of her body whenever he was around.

Ever since she sat down and had a conversation with Scorpius, her intensity of her glancing at him at random times skyrocketed. And in the name of everything that’s pure, she never thought that Albus and Scorpius could pull something as unspeakable as time traveling. Back in her homeland, messing with time, fate, life, and death were considered to be taboo. Some people would even say it was a form of dark arts.

And now, Albus was suffering because of that.

On Tuesday morning Charm, Albus caught Irene looking at him, _again_. She knew it was embarrassing and he probably got _‘I think Irene likes you’_ a lot from the other boys.

_I. Do. Not. Like. Albus._

Well, she meant she didn’t like him _that way_.

He was indeed a good friend and she understood that Albus was a very reserved and hard-to-approached kind of person. Everyone could take a hint on that one. He was that one person who could make people feel close to him yet also feel so far away from him. Out of all her Slytherin classmates, he interacted the least with her. It was almost like he avoided her.

And Irene couldn’t help to think that Albus was indeed didn’t like her.

Whenever she told stories to their Slytherin classmates, Albus never engaged or seemed interested to it. But when other people told a story of theirs, he occasionally got into it and even told something that related to him within the story. Heck, even when Joyce told them about her attempt to make tiramisu cake on Christmas, Albus commented here and there.

_Wait!_

Irene realized that Albus never engaged in the conversation whenever the girls did it.

But he did to Joyce’s stories.

_No way_

Did Albus like Joyce?

Did He?

Did He?

_No No No No No No. No way!_

“Pssst Irene…. Irene!” the hissing voice startled her.

It was Joyce’s

“Have you done?” she whispered Irene, “It’s ten minutes before the period ends”.

_Oh yeah, the annoying Ancient Runes exercise._

Irene looked at her paper and realized the reason she was daydreaming in the first place was that she stuck in the last three questions of her exercise. “Not yet. How about you?” she whispered back at Joyce.

Her friend nodded her head. Irene looked at Professor Williams who seemed rather occupied with reading and grading the papers in front of him.

“Mind if I copy the answers for ten to twelve?” she whispered again to Joyce

“Not at all. Just don't write in the exact same words as mine” Joyce whispered while thrusting her parchment in front of Irene, “It’s nice knowing you have an academic weakness” she smirked at Irene.

Irene sighed, “I begin to regret taking Ancient Runes”.

And then, she quickly copied Joyce's answers.

Professor McGonagall was totally wrong. Ancient Runes was completely different from her old school’s Ancient Civilization subject. Irene had to study really hard in order to cover the third year’s materials and at the same time understanding the fourth-year’s as well. It needed a lot of energy which Irene didn’t have these days. It seemed that this particular subject wasn’t going to be her best friend for now and maybe for the years to come if she didn’t put an extra effort to catch up.

“Alright, times up everyone!” Olivia Williams, the Ancient Runes Professor announced “Ms. Davies, please collect the papers”.

Some students stretched their body and everyone started to talk to their own peers. Joyce got up from her seat and began to collect the papers around the classroom. Irene unconsciously stared at Joyce’s movement. And when Joyce got into Albus’s table, she smiled at him.

“Did you survive it?” she asked

“Yup! And I make sure no human need to be grilled” Albus replied while handling his paper

“Oh, how noble. Such a good boy” Joyce patted Albus’s shoulder lightly

Both of them chuckled

_What was that?_

Did they-

Did they just throw an inside joke?

_Albus never throws an inside joke to anyone! – Maybe except with Scorpius._

Joyce continued to collect the papers and submitted them to Professor Williams while Irene kept looking at Albus. Eventually, he sensed someone was looking at him and turned his head at Irene. Albus frowned at her and turned his head in the opposite direction which Irene immediately did as well.

She was caught staring at him, _again_.

Irene shifted her eyes and looked at Joyce who was walking to their table.

Joyce was very pretty; her oval face was adorned with a high pointed small nose, a pair of blue upturned eyes, and cute small lips. Her long wavy brown hair was often done in a ponytail and let some of her hair cascading her face and creating a cute sideline for her bang.

She was also very pretty within her heart too. Always willing to help her friends with anything and truly knew how to make people around her genuinely like her.

So maybe, Albus was one of those people who fell for Joyce’s charm.

Maybe he did like her, _that way_.

It made sense if he liked her

Before Irene came, they were the only Slytherins in this class. And Joyce said that they always sit together. So before Irene came, Ancient Runes was _their thing_.

Was that why Albus seemed didn’t like her?

Because Irene made Ancient Rune wasn’t _their thing_ anymore?

Because now Irene came as a third wheel?

Should Irene not sitting with her next week and let Albus and Joyce sat together?

And why?

Why?

Why?!

Why the possibility of them together bothered Irene?!

****

**_Our only daughter,_ **

**_Irene, we are so sorry to hear that. But it’s been four months since we moved here. Shouldn’t you already have adapted to the school’s menu?_ **

**_Hang in there, Honey! In two months, you’ll come home. And we promised you the first food you’ll eat are your beloved unagi and gyudon!_ **

**_We are happy that you could keep up your classes. We expect nothing less from you. Keep study hard!_ **

**_Oh, we’d like to meet all of them, they sound super nice and fun. Any chance one of your friends agree to visit us in the summer?_ ** **_They could bring a bit of laughter here._ **

**_Everything seems so down lately._ **

**_Your brother’s baby owl is officially dead. He ‘hugged’ him too much and now he is crying all day every day._ **

**_Poor Hoshi, he ended up sleeping with your brother every night as his body pillow._ **

**_He also asked us constantly when will you come back home and read him the Beedle stories again. Oh sweety, we hope you are happy. Someone in this family has to be and cease all this sadness away._ **

**_Have you read the news lately? It’s scary. Stay safe, Irene. Don’t do anything funny and dangerous. Just be a good child and stay out of trouble._ **

**_Yours,_ **

**_Mama and Tou-san_ **

**_p.s: Percy Weasley turns out to be an interesting man. I don’t mind his company at all._ **

**_\- Our ancestors once said: The arrogance of knowing the correct answer and the prejudice of using our own norm to determine things would be the doom of people who seek for knowledge-_ **

Irene read the quote once again.

Although it sounded legit like something some ancient Asian folks would say, she knew it was just her father saying she shouldn’t downplay her teachers. And honestly, if it wasn’t for the History of Magic and Ancient Runes being so damn confusing, she would.

_I am sorry Mama, Tou-san, Taka; I am not happy as well._

Irene looked at her dinner; beef wellington, baked asparagus, and mashed potatoes. Irene had to admit that the potatoes were great. But the beef was too salty for her liking and it reminded Irene how she couldn’t adapt her palates consistently.

In the first month, she was thrilled with the idea of European diet style; sandwiches, steak, potatoes, sausages, pies, bread, and a lot of cheese. But on the beginning of the third month, she wasn’t so thrilled anymore. She missed having tamagoyaki and rice instead of sunny side up and toast as breakfast; she missed having miso soup and tempura instead of chicken sandwich and baked potatoes as lunch; she missed having tonkatsu and yakitori as dinner instead of steak and chicken wings.

And she realized,

She missed home.

She really missed her home.

Irene looked around and found her friends eating and chatting happily. Ethan was cutting a big part of the roast chicken while Julian scoped another portion of the mashed potatoes. In front of her, Stephanie was biting another cut of baked carrots. Everyone seemed to have a great time and it made Irene so out of place.

Hogwarts was everyone’s home but hers.

Irene turned her head into another direction. She found Joyce and Estelle eating happily while having a conversation with none other than Albus and Scorpius.

And just like that, the uncomfortable feeling sipping through Irene’s skin once more.

It burnt her skin, clawed, and pierced her heart from inside.

She closed her eyes, put her down her knife and fork, then got up of her seat.

“Where are you going?” Stephanie asked.

“Lavatory” she answered shortly, “see you later” Irene said cheerfully.

Of course, she didn’t go to the lavatory and of course, she wasn’t cheerful. Instead, she went into the library and sat silently in one of the study tables. She picked a random book from the bookshelf in front of her and opened it so people would think that she was reading.

Irene knew it was wrong to feel this way toward Albus and Joyce. Joyce was a genuinely nice person. She helped Irene adapted to Hogwarts environment, she helped Irene through Ancient Runes, she gave Irene advises for some troublesome people like Rose and her gang,

Heck! She was the one who told Irene about Albus.

Irene wouldn’t forget when Joyce told her that Albus was the only child in his entire family history who ever get sorted into Slytherin. Joyce told her how awkward Albus was with the rest of his siblings and cousins whom all got sorted into Gryffindors. She was also well aware of how hard he was pushing himself toward mastering skills in a certain subject like Potion.

It made Irene more uncomfortable to think that Joyce was often teasing her alongside Samantha. It could mean either Joyce didn’t feel any romantic feeling for Albus or she just great at hiding her feeling. 

But since when?

Since when did Irene’s feeling toward him changed from ‘I was worry and want to know about the sick guy’ into ‘I was sick to know more about the guy’?

First, it was a concern. And then it turned to be a curiosity, which then led to an observation. And from her observations, he was really charming- in his own way. There weren't people fear him, there weren't people crazy over him. But he held a certain aura that made people wanted to stay by his side once they knew him.

He didn’t necessarily try to shine during classes. But he had that frozen effect to the class whenever he answered questions. He didn’t try to impress the Professor and put so much effort when they were making a potion. He worked very calm and meticulously, always quiet, and didn’t make a fuss. And ended up having the best result among the others. 

Enigma.

Albus Potter was an enigma to Irene.

And that’s what drove her into him more and more.

_Oh, Kami-Sama._

It wasn’t good.

It wasn’t good at all.

She really needed to sort her feeling toward him and even started to except that he didn’t care about her as much as she did towards him.

Irene silently sat there and stared blankly at the book. Seconds turned into minutes and minutes turned into hours. She wasn’t sure how long she sat there, but she was sure the dinner was long ended. The library was started to get crowded by the older students.

The tables behind Irene was filled by some people who were discussing something in low voices. Another person’s voice joined them and changed the topic into something that caught Irene’s ears.

“Are you sure?” someone whispered

“I heard it from Cortez. He overheard Potter’s conversation with Finnigan after the quidditch practice” a person replied

“So, who is this girl?”

“Samantha Burke”

“Burke?”

“A fourth-year Slytherin”

“Sly-?!” the other person almost screamed, “Did your ears function correctly?” she whispered again.

“Believe me, I wished I heard something different. Cortez said that the girl was there. She and Potter even holding hands”

“How the hell did it happened?”

“Something about months of sneaking around and letters and- God damn it!”

“Let’s go! I want to hear it from Cortez myself”

There was a sound of rustled and books being closed. And then the group of students behind her quickly walked away from her tables.

After they disappeared, Irene also quickly closed the book and shove it back into the shelf. She almost ran but remembered that the librarian was really terrifying. When she officially out of the library, she ran with her all her might to the dungeon and got into her house’s common room.

“Sorry!” yelled Irene when she bumped into some Slytherins in the underground corridor,

“Elapidae,” she said the password.

The wall opened and the majestic sight of the common room greeted her. The first time Irene walked into it; she was speechless. The green lanterns, the high stony ceiling and walls, the huge fireplace, and the underwater scenery through the windows made her lost words.

It was beyond stunning.

There were many people either studying, chilling, or playing some games there. Her own cat, Michi was comfortably sitting on top of a dark mahogany table. She looked around and didn’t found any of the girls or the boys of the fourth-year there. So then, she ran again into the bedrooms area and quickly opened her bedroom door.

There were Samantha and Stephanie inside.

“Where have you been?” Stephanie asked calmly, “Why are you panting like that?”.

“Haahhh”, “Haaaah”, “Haaaaah”

Irene was gasping for air while closing the door and walking closer to them. She sat in Stephanie’s bed and looked at Samantha,

“It’s starting,” Irene said shortly

Samantha and Stephanie looked at each other and seemed to understand what she meant by that.

They both nodded to themselves.

_Three days ago, Irene and her friends were ready for bed when Samantha suddenly put out a ‘meeting’ in their bedroom. The topic of that night was about the deal she made with James Potter the day before. No wonder on that day, Samantha seemed distracted all the time to the point where Irene had to save her from being slapped by a poisonous tentacle plant in Herbology._

_“Please tell me you are kidding” said Stephanie._

_“I am not, Steph” Samantha said firmly._

_Silence fell, as everyone tried to grasp the idea of their very own friend Samantha and James Potter made a deal in which they would PRETEND to be each other’s love interest. And all that nonsense was for the sake of making James’s life easier. That didn’t sound like something Samantha would likely do._

_Furthermore, if Irene truly thought about it, wasn’t it would make James being hated by his peers?_

_“Not to be rude, Sam. But it doesn’t make sense to me” Joyce voiced Irene’s thought as well, “If James and you start fake dating, wouldn’t it make him being an outsider among his friends”_

_“Forget about Potter, actually. Wouldn’t it make you being an outsider among Slytherins?” Irene asked._

_To be honest, she didn’t care about James Potter at all. He could very well jump from on top of a cliff, dropped dead with a skull cracked, and Irene still wouldn’t even make a fuss about it._

_“Forget about Potter and his crazy idea at all! Wouldn’t it be good if Finnigan and Potter continue to fight with each other?” Stephanie asked, “The Quidditch Final is scheduled a month away from now. If Gryffindor wasn’t in sync, we could have a chance to get The Cup this year” she added._

_“That is if Gryffindor manages to get more than one hundred and twenty points more to Ravenclaw in the upcoming match” commented Estelle_

_“They will” Stephanie answered confidently, “Ravenclaw’s seeker is lame as hell”_

_“Their chasers are really good though” Estelle replied, “Jefferson is lame too, just so you know”_

_“Allan isn’t lame!” Stephanie replied, “He’s just a pussy. That’s why Ethan take down every other Seeker during the match”,_

_“That literally strengthens my arg-”_

_“Could we forget about quidditch for once and for all!” Joyce said, “Wouldn’t you get tons of hate from those girls?” Joyce asked Samantha, “You could be in danger”._

_“Why the hell did you agree to it again?” Estelle asked Samantha._

_Sam fell silent for a moment and that was the first time Irene saw how solemn Samantha could be. In four months, she learned many traits about her friends. And being hesitant was never in Irene’s dictionary to describe her._

_“He pleaded me,” she said quietly. “He begged me, over and over again. He begged **me** ” Samantha empathized on the particular pronoun, “A girl who comes from a family that constantly swear upon for owning a store that once being The Dark Lord’s workplace! A girl of the family which sold a freaking cabinet and killed Albus Dumbledore!”_

_“I think-” Samantha stopped, “_

_"I think I want it all; the jealousy and the hate I will get” her voice although sounded uncertain, still manage to sound confident as well._

_“I don’t mind all of that. Scratch that! I expect all of that coming for me!”,_

_“I want to see the jealousy and hate coming from their filthy eyes! Because I, Samantha Burke could get the man, they’ll never. ever. get” she said._

_There were many things Irene learned about some general behaviors everyone in her house seemed to have in common; they were cunning, calculating, and had this desire for achievements and power- as well as a certain mark of social status. At first, Irene thought that Samantha agreed because she did like James Potter. But it was crystal clear now; what she wanted was the effect of fake dating James._

_The room fell silent again until Stephanie got up from her bed and headed to where Samantha sat. She stood up in front of her and put her hand on Samantha’s shoulder._

_“Spoken like a true Slytherin,” Stephanie said._

Samantha did tell Irene and the rest of the girls about the story cover-up she and James already arranged. She also told them that Fred and Louis Weasley also knew about this arrangement. But she didn’t them how the two of them would spread the story. But whatever it was, they completely planned it out meticulously, because it worked and exploded just like an _Expluso_. 

Irene concluded; it only took a solid twenty-four hours for the news to be spread thoroughly within Hogwarts. Diego Cortez, one of the Gryffindor Beaters ‘ _overheard’_ the conversation. He told his close friends who told their other close friends during Divination who were being eavesdropped by some Hufflepuffs, who then told his Ravenclaws friends in the boy’s lavatory.

She also concluded that lavatories were the perfect place for overhearing random stuff. Because by Thursday afternoon, Ethan stomped into the Transfiguration classroom with an obviously angry face. He didn’t say anything and just sat silently throughout the whole class.

Later after the class ended, all of them heading toward the Dungeon and he cornered the girls in the underground corridor. He grabbed Samantha’s shoulders and forced her to face him,

“TELL ME IT’S A JOKE!” he screamed.

“Ethan!” Stephanie, Julian, and Xavier reacted at the same time.

Irene was very shocked upon seeing the scene because Ethan always seemed so calm and friendly. Seeing him so livid right now made it looked a million times more terrifying within Irene’s eyes. What did they say? People who never angry would be the most terrifying when the did.

Ethan, whose body was held by Xavier and arms by Stephanie didn’t back down and still strongly grabbed Samantha’s shoulder, “YOU AND POTTER! TELL ME IT’S A JOKE!”

Xavier looked confused, “What happens with Sam and Al?” he asked while turning his head toward Albus.

Albus who was standing up behind all of them with Scorpius by his side, also visibly confused by the whole situation.

“NOT ALBUS!” Ethan screamed, “TELL ME! IT IS TRUE ABOUT YOU AND JAMES?!”

“Ethan, calm down” Stephanie also seemed taken back by Ethan’s anger. 

“THEY SAY THAT ALL THIS TIME, YOU AND POTTER WERE SNEAKING AROUND!”

“TELL ME IT’S NOT TRUE!”

“TELL ME, SAMANTHA!”

Samantha sighed and calmly yanked Ethan’s arms from her shoulder, “Is it a problem if it’s true?”

Ethan looked shocked by Samantha’s response, “Are you just asking me whether it’s a problem that ALL THIS TIME, MY FRIEND was secretly dating the GRYFFINDOR SEEKER?” he asked her.

"DO YOU EVEN REMEMBER THAT I WAS THE FIRST PERSON YOU EVER SPOKEN TO IN HOGWARTS?!"

"YOU ARE MY FIRST FRIEND!"

“AND YOU HAVE THE AUDACITY TO ASK THAT BLOODY QUESTION TO ME?!”,

“I PLEDGE MY LOYALTY TO THIS HOUSE!”,

“Ethan-” Stephanie intended to calm him,

“NO STEPH! NO!” Ethan shook his head, “There’s a line in every friendship”,

“AND YOU HAVE CROSSED THE BLOODY LINE!” he sternly said to Samantha.

“People’s coming” warned Julian in sudden.

Ethan slowly took steps back from Samantha and leaning into the opposite wall. All ten of them were getting quite in a single second.

There was a tapestry in their common room that said ** _‘Whatever happens in Slytherin, stays in Slytherin’_**. And it seemed that everyone truly took that _decree_ seriously. When Irene, Scorpius, and Samantha caught Jefferson and Weasley weeks ago, Jefferson didn’t even ask them to keep his secret.

He only said, “Have you guys ever read the words on the Common Room’s tapestry?”

The three of them nodded and no more words needed to be exchanged. Jefferson and Weasley’s secret remained to be one until this very day.

True to Julian’s words, there was a crowd of people turning from another corridor. They were students who obviously just getting out of Potion class as all of them carrying cauldron in their hands. Judging from their size, they were either the first or second year.

“Albus!” yelled someone among the crowd of Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs students.

Second-year it was, as Lily Potter was running ahead of the group toward them and gave her brother a tight hug. Albus circled his hands on her shoulder and bowing down to kiss Lily’s head crown.

“Lily, you coming?” ask a Hufflepuff girl as the crowd was passing them.

“You go ahead, Meggy” answered Lily

“Alright,” replied the Meggy girl.

“Hai Al” a Gryffindor boy greeted him as he was passing, not even waiting for Albus to answer

“Hai Hugo” Albus answered shortly

Irene and her other friends were still standing on either side of the corridor’s walls. On her side of the wall were Julian, Estelle, and Ethan while the others were on another side. To be honest, Irene was still bewildered by Ethan and slowly distancing herself from him. Even in his silence, Irene could feel his anger, and she bet others were too. Except for the little Potter who obviously oblivious to the heavy tension in the air.

“How was Potion?” Albus asked his sister,

“It’s hard Al” Lily replied, “I could grab the theory just fine but the execution is leaving me crazy”.

Irene could swear she saw Stephanie nodded her head.

“Don’t worry, you’ll get better” Albus said calmly.

Suddenly, Lily was hugging Albus again and burying her head on his chest. He seemed rather taken aback. “What’s with the hugs?” he asked.

“I miss you so much!” she answered. Albus frowned his forehead upon hearing her answer.

“Oh! I almost forget- could you hold this for a second?” she handed Albus her cauldron, took off her backpack, and dug something inside it.

“Here!” she was handing Albus an envelope, “letter from Grandma”.

“Ah…” he received it.

“She is so happy you like your sweater Al!” Lily answered while jumping on her little legs, “But she is happier for the fact that you sent her a letter”

Albus smiled a little, “How do you know?”

“She mentioned it in her letter for me” replied the little sister, “You are the best!” she briefly hugged Albus again.

And then Lily stepped back and turned her head around. Her eyes lighten up, showing no acknowledgment regarding the awkwardness between the ten of them.

“Hai Irene! Hai Scorpius!” she greeted them.

“Hai Lily”

“Hai” replied Irene shortly.

Everyone was glancing at Irene and Scorpius from the corner of their eyes, probably wondering how the hell did the two of them familiar with Lily.

“It seemed that all of you heading to Dungeon” she said cheerfully

“Hmm hmm” Albus answered, now stared at Irene. His eyes felt like they were piercing through hers, judging her harshly.

“Well, I will not delay you any further, then” Lily stepped back from Albus,

“Oh, by the way!” she turned her body toward Samantha, “I’ve heard everything from James!”,

“He said that the two of you had been secretly exchanging letters since last year. It’s so romantic!” Lily screamed in delight.

Unknowingly to her, the tension was rising ten times higher than before. Albus’s eyes were rounding and he was glaring at Samantha with an obvious shock expression. Ethan’s knuckles were becoming paler by seconds and every guy who previously hadn’t know about it, looked bewildered by the news.

“I am so happy you two decide not to keep it a secret anymore” she was clapping a little,

“I am really sick of seeing James always flirt with random girls. They keep making me deliver presents and letters to him. But now that I know it was only to protect your relationship, I am so relieved”,

“That is the most romantic love story I’ve ever know!” she screamed.

“It’s sickening, isn’t it? All this house rivalry stuffs” Lily asked no one in particular, “I mean, to the point of forcing people to hide their relationships? It’s awful!”.

“I am really happy for you and James, Samantha” her genuine happiness was radiating through her words.

Irene looked at Ethan who now closed his eyes and still holding his knuckles hard. She could see Stephanie turned her body away from everyone and Xavier’s eyes seemed ready to pop out of their socket.

_This girl must be very insensitive to her surrounding_

She turned her body to Albus once again, who quickly changed his expression to the normal expression of him, “See you later, brother!” she said goodbye to her brother.

She walked a few feet away before turned her body into their direction once again, “Emmm, see you later too, Scorpius” Lily said while waving her hand timidly.

Before Scorpius could even answer her, she quickly ran away from them.

_Oh, Kami-Sama._

No one said anything as she dashed happily through the corridor and disappeared in a corner. No one said anything seconds after that and minutes after that. The cold corridor got colder as the time passed, increased the unspeakable tension between everyone.

Albus appeared astonished, not knowing which fact annoyed him more; his sister knew Irene or his brother dating Samantha. Xavier was bowing down his head, looking at the stony floor. Stephanie faced the wall and banging her head softly to the wall. Julian and Scorpius though, seemed as calm as ever. It made Irene trembled a little; if angry Ethan was this terrifying, imagine how petrifying it would be if Julian or Scorpius ever get mad. Even hell would be frozen.

After what it felt like ten years, Ethan got his body up from the wall and muttering “It’s sickening, isn’t it? All this house rivalry stuffs” in a mockery remark, and walked away from them heading toward the Dungeon.

No one hadn’t moved when he turned around and said venomously,

“Just want to warn you, Burke. I’ll make sure to hit your romantic boyfriend right in his precious head”.

Three days later, Gryffindor beat Ravenclaws with one hundred and forty points gaps.

And everything was going down.

\--

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter is sad, like- really sad.


	10. Irene: Dear Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I asked him, ‘Why? Wasn’t it terrifying inside the prison?’ and he answered, ‘Not really. Most of the time, it was just cold. But it did become terrifying in the last two years’”
> 
> “‘Why? What’s changed?’ I asked again”,
> 
> “He said, ‘my last friend has died two years ago and now I was all that left in this lonely world’”

**Irene**

\--

Irene could feel the tension between the boys and girls. The boys sided with Ethan, who was very committed to the quidditch rivalry business. Meanwhile, the girls understood Samantha’s family and self-esteem problem. Stephanie had a difficult position though; she held her friendship with Samantha higher than her ambition for winning The House Cup but at the same time, she knew how hard Ethan worked for their house team.

After the Friday classes ended, Joyce, Estelle, and Samantha headed for the library to do the Potion essay due on Monday next week. Irene who still had this weird, burning jealousy over Joyce decided not to go with them and Stephanie who was tired of keeping her friends together decide to tag along. They sat on a wide clearing in the back of the castle, with a fast-green field surrounding them.

Stephanie, who became the chaser of the house team since the second year knew the struggle of their house team. The team hadn’t won the cup for the last thirteen years and stopped got into the final since eight years ago. That’s why there was a period of time when the resident of Slytherins House didn’t even care about the quidditch. Allan Jefferson, the captain of the Slytherin House Team was the appointed captain after three other people decline the position. He’d been the captain since he was in his fourth-year.

But then, Ethan got into the house team in their third year and he brought a shining hope for Slytherin House. He was calculating, merciless, calm, and focus; that’s why he made an excellent beater. Moreover, Ethan had a deep sense of loyalty towards the house and considered every it's residents as his friends. That made him could form excellent teamwork with anyone in a short period of time.

They hadn’t won the cup, but at least they got into the final since last year.

And they had a big chance of winning the cup this year, “Mike Finnigan is an asshole who acts that everyone should do everything he said, Weasley was a crybaby know-it-all, Cortez and Jackson were downright losers, and Potter was a ball of fire who could explode with the tiniest confrontation. This year’s Gryffindor Team sucks”,

“This year could be ours,” said Stephanie.

“Although I don’t understand the importance of quidditch that much and probably never will, it does sounds Ethan works really hard for the team” Irene replied,

“If you prefer to take Ethan’s side, that’s okay. I, Estelle, and Joyce would manage to stick for Samantha”.

Stephanie rolled her eyes, “Oh, please Irene. I am not that low of putting my friendship below quidditch”.

There was a slight moment of silence before she continued.

“I truly understand the deep meaning behind Samantha’s words that night” she said quietly.

Irene didn’t reply.

She felt that she didn’t deserve to do it.

“I imagine Samantha begin to regret her decision now” said Irene to change the conversation’s course.

Stephanie sighed loudly, “For real” and lied on the grass.

Irene joined her and lied on the grass as well. The chill afternoon wind was so pleasant, it almost made her forget the bad mood lurking in the air.

After some minutes of silence, Stephanie began to talk again “Do you know how lucky you are? -” she asked, “for _not_ being raised here?”

Irene didn’t answer because she knew, it wasn’t actually a question.

“Most of us-” Stephanie hesitated, “inherited the sins of our parents and relatives and ancestors”,

“Sins that many of us couldn’t even picture in our head. ‘Why?’ I always ask myself, -” she said slowly and quietly,

“Why did my grandfather do those things, why did my parents’ side with the wrong one? -”

“Why?”,

“Why?!”,

“I couldn’t even imagine myself torturing people,” she stopped again, “let alone kill something or someone”,

“But I also angry at everyone. Why?! Why do people see us the same way they see our ancestors?”,

“We aren’t them! We are completely different being!”.

Irene kept her mouth shut.

“And for some reason, their children think it’s a cool thing to hate us for no freaking reason!”,

“Oh my god! A Slytherin coming! Beware of a dark wizard wants to be! Let’s hate them with passion!” Stephanie screamed.

“Who do they think they are?!”

She sighed loudly again, “Life sucks” she stated.

Irene’s parents did tell her about the first and second Wizarding War, but it was only around the involvement of the Rosier family. She did read an ancient history of the old wizard families of Britain from the library; Albus, Scorpius, Xavier, and her family were often mentioned. Some of them were good and noble, some of them were downright evil.

And within those books, she never once encounters a story about Samantha’s family. Besides what her friend told her that night, she didn’t know anything about the Burke family at all.

“Hey Steph, can I ask you something?” Irene asked.

“Hmmm hemmm” Stephanie hummed.

“That night, Samantha mentioned her father’s shop being The Dark Lord’s workplace-”

“Yeah…”

“And a-” Irene stopped for a while, “a cab- a cabinet?”

“Uh-huhh”

“What is it about?” Irene asked, “How could a cabinet kill Albus Dumbledore?”

“Oh.. that” Stephanie took a breath,

“It was a pair of vanishing cabinets. To put it simply, they could transport things from one cabinet to another” Stephanie answered,

“Someone used them to transport people into Hogwarts. Unfortunately, those people were transported here not to join the fancy dinner at the Great Hall. They came here to kill Dumbledore”,

“My parents said that it’s Severus Snape who killed him. After the war, some people thought that it didn’t make sense- if you think about it. Dumbledore was dubbed the greatest wizard in the twentieth century. Even Voldemort was afraid of him! How could a potion teacher kill him?”

“On top of that, they said that Harry Potter was always tight-lipped whenever he was interviewed about that night event. So, yeah! It was kind of cleared at one point and then it was a piece of vague information at another” Stephanie herself seemed confused by her words,

“You know what? Just- just read Harry Potter’s biography. There are tons of books about him and Dumbledore”,

“Keep up with this country’s history, Irene!” her friend said.

“Well, I try my best to keep myself up of the annoying stuff from this _great_ country!” she yelled,

“So, someone bought the cabinets from Samantha’s parents’ shop and brought one of them into Hogwarts. And then this person transported a bunch of murderers here to kill the Headmaster”.

“Yup! You nailed it!” her friend gave her a thumb up.

“Did they have a clear story who this person was?”

“Oh yeah, they did!” Stephanie answered, “It’s very very clear! No doubt of information on it. The newspaper wrote it, Harry Potter confirmed it. So, it’s a fact!”.

“Who is he?” Irene asked.

Stephanie seemed hesitated for a little while before turned her head and facing Irene,

“Scorpius’s father-” she said quietly,

“Draco Malfoy”.

Quidditch.

In her old school Mahoutokoro, flying lesson was mandatory until the third years. And so, quidditch was on the line of being a fun but sometimes boring kind of game to fill the hours. It was meant to be a game and no more.

But in Hogwarts, it was different. Oh boy- it was really different.

Irene was starting to hate it.

The strain that roots from of the damn game was really unbelievable; James Potter planned the whole thing for the sake of winning the Quidditch House Cup, Ethan and the boys now hate Samantha because of it, Gryffindors and Slytherins were now hating each other more than usual, and the resident of both houses was trying to pull pranks on each other on daily basis! Irene thought some of them were downright dangerous. And it made her pulled her hair out that the teachers didn’t even try to stop it!

What the hell was wrong with this school?!

The final quidditch match between the two houses was still three weeks later, but the tension was already unbearable.

To make matter worse, James Potter had to be that jerk who came and _snatched_ Samantha away from the girls at a random time to ‘talk’- whatever that implied Irene didn’t bother to know. The mess they created was a disaster for all of the people around them. All people, except maybe Lily Potter who sometimes threw Samantha a wave and a smile during meal times from the Gryffindor table.

Estelle was beginning to roll her eyes secretly whenever Lily did that.

There was a little bright side though. She knew that Scorpius and Julian were actually taking Ethan’s side just for the sake of his sanity. The same thing Irene did for Samantha. In addition to getting hate stares by random girls at the corridors, just as Irene had predicted the Slytherins weren’t happy about the news at all. These days, whenever Samantha was stepping into the common room, everyone would turn their back at her. Irene assumed it was some kind of silent declaration that they were no longer accept her as one of their own.

And Albus was one of the people who religiously did it whenever Samantha got closer to him.

Irene couldn’t really tell whether he was angry at his friend for dating his brother or at his brother for dating his friend. But if there was one thing for sure, he was undeniably irritated at something- or someone.

And it was shown on his face all. the. freaking. time.

Whatever infuriating him, Irene hoped it wasn’t related to her. She also hoped that somehow, Albus asked Lily how Irene knew her and somehow convinced him that she wasn’t some creepy stalker who gawked at him all the time and try to get close to his sibling to get to him.

The quidditch team members were practicing harder as the time of the final match was getting closer. Stephanie would come back to their room precisely at the new curfew; nine o’clock. She and Ethan sometimes would sleep during classes and the others had to cover them.

And it wasn’t just them.

Irene could tell that Rose Weasley was also tired from practicing too. She wasn’t as active as usual in classes and sometimes would doze off.

Quidditch at Hogwarts was indeed being taken _too_ seriously. 

And before Irene could even breathe lightly, it was time for the House Cup’s final match.

“It was a beautiful day for The Final for this year’s House Cup! Isn’t it everyone?!” Roxanne Weasley’s voice echoed through the microphone.

“This year’s final match, Gryffindor Vs Slytherin!” She screamed,

“Let’s make it worth!”

“Here is the Gryffindor Team lead by Mike Finnigan and Slytherin Team lead by Allan Jefferson!”

The players from both houses flew inside the arena and got into the position. Two minutes later, the game started. The thing about quidditch was, there was a lot that going on at the same time. Rose got the quaffle first and attempt to make a goal into the Slytherin goal keep, but Stephanie and other Slytherin chaser intercepted her and took the quaffle away. At the same time, Ethan and his partner- whom Irene sure his name was Raphael Goldsmith- were having a match with the Gryffindor beater to strike the blugder into other players.

“Snyde and Lee are having a passing game with each other, marching into the goalposts!”

“Pass! Ten to Nil for Slytherin!”

The people in Slytherin's side clapped while the other three booed. It didn’t last for long because Finnigan quickly scored, made both houses had even scored.

“Ten to Ten for Gryffindor!”

Everyone clapped their hands again.

Forty-five minutes into the game, both teams got a yellow card and the score was one hundred and sixty to one hundred and twenty with Slytherin leading the score. Ethan seemed to keep his eyes to James Potter all the time and occasionally strike a bludger in his direction to distract him from finding the snitch. And when Stephanie said he was merciless toward his enemy, it truly showed. James Potter was in the game of cat and mouse with Ethan while Goldsmith seemed to handle the bludger for Gryffindor chasers very well.

“God damn it, Goldsmith! Do you want to kill my cousin?!” Roxanne said after Raphael almost knocked Rose off her broom.

“And speaking of beaters, I swear! Cortez, Jackson, could both of you at least knock someone off their broom?!”

“I’ve been commentating the house cup since my fifth-year, no Gryffindor beaters ever knocked someone off!”

“Step up your game, you pussies!”

“Ou-ouch!-”

“Ms. Weasley!!” Professor McGonagall’s voice echoed through the mic

Everyone laughed.

And just like that, minutes after she said that the Gryffindor beaters did knock someone off.

“OH MY GOD!!!!”

“ACCRINGTON DOWN!!”

It was Ethan.

The whole Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaws pitch was clapping and shouting while people the Slytherin gasping.

The game was paused for a while because Ethan was now lying on the ground. And Irene felt what maybe other Slytherins felt too.

Their shining hope was being taken away.

Their hope was defeated.

“ACCRINGTON DOWN!”

“ACCRINGTON DOWN!”

“ACCRINGTON DOWN!”

Those people chanting happily.

Irene never understood the importance of quidditch in Hogwarts. Why everyone was so crazy and so into it? Why someone could get pissed off by others when it comes to it? Why someone spent so much energy; scheming, lying, cheating, just to make sure they win the game?

When Ethan was flown away by Madam Pomfrey, Irene felt her tears rolling from her eyes. It felt like she wanted to run away from the crowd and run as fast as she could to get into Ethan and hugged him. She wanted to pat his back and be there when he woke up.

_“You’ve done your best”_

_“You’ve worked hard”_

_“You’ve played brilliantly”_

_“Do not ever, ever blame yourself”_

She wanted to say those words to him.

“ACCRINGTON DOWN!”

“ACCRINGTON DOWN!”

“ACCRINGTON DOWN!”

The people from the other three houses kept chanting the annoying words.

And just like that, five minutes after the game resumed James Potter wrapped the game by catching the snitch.

“GRYFFINDOR WINS!!” Roxanne Weasley announced.

“Thank you for these years. I am Roxanne Weasley, and it’s a goodbye” she said almost somberly.

The clapped and shouts felt like a piercing thunder in Irene’s chest. She was angry, sad, disappointed, and wanted to throw her bloodiest hex into everyone. She wanted to hurt them, make them stop chanting, make them stopped say those hurtful words.

“ACCRINGTON DOWN!” just became her most hated words.

They sat silently around Ethan’s bed. The members of the Slytherin quidditch team and her whole classmates were waiting for him to wake up. His head and right arm were wrapped by bandages. Madam Pomfrey said that it was a fractured bone for his right arm and concussion for his head. She would give Ethan bone repairing potion only after he woke up.

He looked so peaceful in his sleep. No hint of burden, no sign of anger, or resentment, or sadness, or disappointment. Samantha was sitting on the stool beside his bed while Stephanie and Jefferson sat on the bed next to it. The others were scattered near his bed too.

“Well! Doesn’t it a little bit crowded here?” Madam Pomfrey asked them.

It did, as there were fifteen people waiting for Ethan to wake up. If the situation and emotion were a little bit different, Irene would agree to her. But this time wasn’t one of those moments.

“Come on! Out everyone!” she said in a high pitch, “Mr. Accrington has to sleep peacefully!”

No one moved.

“Kids! Out now!” she started to grab one of the Slytherin chasers- Maya Flint’s arm. And she didn’t move at all.

No one said anything

No one moved from their place

“Oh Dumbledore!” she yelled, “Don’t play with me! Out now!”

Mathilda Sherburn, the Head of Slytherin House came into the infirmary. Irene glanced at her for a second and looked away.

“Maty, thank god you are here!”

“Hai Poppy? Is he alright?” she asked Madam Pomfrey,

“Hah, well I am sure he will. But these kids of yours truly need to leave now!”

No one said anything

No one moved from their place

“Oh Poppy, just this one. These kids had worked very hard, let them stay here for a little longer, will you?” Professor Sherburn persuaded Madam Pomfrey.

“Well, it could work for the quidditch players. But the other need to get out” she insisted.

“Yeah, that’s fair” Professor Sherburn answered,

“Come on fourth-years, let your friend rest”,

“You could come again later” she convinced them.

No one said anything

No one moved from their place

“Julian” the professor called him.

Julian who sat exactly in front of Irene closed his eyes and sighed. He knew what Professor Sherburn meant by that and began to get up. He patted Scorpius' shoulder and Scorpius instantly stood up from his seat. Just like a chain reaction, everyone started to get up too. Irene followed her friends, began to walk toward the exit door.

SAAAAAASHHH!

SAAAAAASHHH!

SAAAAAASHHH!

There was a blue light dashed through one of the windows and float away around the room. The blue light came in the form of a bird; the wings were stretch long, dove in the air looking for something. When the blue light bird was flying lower, Irene could see clearly that it was an Alpine Swift.

A Corporeal Patronus.

Everyone’s eyed shifted on Stephanie who got up and the alpine swift flew approaching her. When she was standing close enough to it, a voice started to come out of the Patronus,

“Sweety?” A woman’s voice was heard,

And then there was a light sobbed,

“Please come back home” the woman sobbed again,

“Your grandfather has passed”.

That was the last words heard before the Patronus disappeared into thin air.

No one said anything

No one moved from their place.

No one had ever felt something was truly a problem until the problem hit them as well.

The funeral was held in the Snyde family’s private cemetery located in the back of their house. The whole fourth-year Slytherins were there, as well as the quidditch team members, Professor Sherburn, Professor McGonagall, and some other teachers. To Irene’s surprise, James Potter, Mike Finnigan, Hufflepuff quidditch captain Karl Hanks, and Ravenclaw’s Martin Boot were also present.

Stephanie’s grandfather's murder marked the tenth case of the whole shenanigan by the psychopath whom the Aurors hadn’t able to catch. The modus operandi was the same as the other nine. He was found on a small path that leads to Hogsmeade, dead, cold, and alone.

Some Aurors who investigated the case were attending too. Irene could finally take a look at this Teddy whom Albus once mentioned. The Head of Magical Law Enforcement, Harry Potter himself was also present. Irene stole some glances at the legendary figure everyone talked about. He was the adult version of Albus with glasses.

Stephanie whose eyes were very red and swollen from excessive crying walked toward the center of the crowd. Irene was sitting on a row beside Julian, Ethan, and Xavier. Ethan who insisted on coming was still bandaged on the head and wore a sling for his right hand.

Today, there was no awkwardness nor anger nor disappointment, only sadness, sorry, and grief for a dear friend.

Stephanie sighed and took a long breath, “It’s an unexpected feeling, even for me. After all, in my whole life, I was only able to meet him in person continuously for a week. And that was on this year’s Easter Break”, she sobbed and there were tears rolling on her cheeks,

Irene never saw Stephanie in that state.

It was one of the most heartbreaking things.

“He wasn’t the best man ever alive on this earth. He made so many mistakes in the past”,

“But all those mistakes brought himself wisdom and it was very beautiful”.

Stephanie sighed, “When I asked him what did he feel being a free man after thirty years lived in prison”,

“His answer was very unexpected for me”.

She bowed her head down for a while and wiped her tears again.

“He said that the world is too wide and too lonely. Being free was not as relieved as he thought it would be”,

Stephanie’s sobbed made Irene couldn’t contain her own tears. She bleeds together alongside her friends.

“I asked him, ‘Why? Wasn’t it terrifying inside the prison?’ and he answered, ‘Not really. Most of the time, it was just cold. But it did become terrifying in the last two years’”

“‘Why? What’s changed?’ I asked again”,

“He said, ‘my last friend has died two years ago and now I was all that left in this lonely world’”

Irene could hear sobbed and sighed beside her too,

“He told me about his Hogwarts days, about his friends, their adventures, their mischiefs, even their crimes. He told me about how they got caught, how they got dragged, how they got on trials, which rooms they were assigned in Azkaban and their life there”,

“He told me as thought that all the things they did together were a precious memory to him”,

Stephanie smiled while tears continuously cascading her face, “And maybe it was”,

“It was precious that they were always together. It didn’t matter whether it was right or wrong, good or bad. They were there for each other”,

“And now he doesn’t have to feel lonely again”,

“Because he finally could meet and be together with his friends in peace and eternity” Stephanie ended her speech.

After the ceremony ended, all of them moved inside the house. Some people were having a conversation in low voices; Mr. Potter, Professor McGonagall, and Mrs. Snyde were standing near the big window. Hanks and Finnigan were on the corner while James Potter and Jefferson were sitting and chatting in one of the chairs.

Irene was startled when a cup of tea was presented right in front of her eyes. She looked up and saw Joyce smiled slightly,

“Thanks” Irene whispered, receiving the cup.

Joyce sat beside her and they just sat silently, too absorbed in the sadness that floats around the air. They sat while occasionally sipping on the tea. The warmth and sweetness of it weren’t enough to clear Irene’s mind, but at least it was enough to keep her busy. After her cup empty, she put it on top of an end table beside her chair.

She saw Ethan got up from his seat and walked toward Samantha, who sat with Stephanie on a sofa. He looked so vulnerable with the sling and bandage; his eyes were red and there was a glimpse of uncertainty in his gesture. Ethan extended his left to Samantha and that was the only thing needed for her to break down. Samantha got up and hugged him.

She circled her hands around his waist and while sobbing on his shoulder, “I am sorry-” she sobbed,

“I am so sorry” she sobbed harder,

“You’ve worked hard, Ethan!” she said in her cry.

Ethan hugged Samantha on her shoulder and sobbed too, “Me too-”, “I am so sorry Sam!”

Irene closed her mouth with her hands because now she was sobbing too. Among all the people in that room, only they knew the depth of those words. For everything that happened in the last three weeks, only they knew how sincere those words for each other. 

Stephanie got up and instantly hugged both of them who welcome her in their embrace. Irene wasted no time, got up, and ran toward them, joining the hug. She felt someone hugged her shoulder from behind and resting his face on her shoulder, it was Albus. She felt that someone hugged her other shoulder and before she knew it, all of her friends were joining the group hug.

“I am so sorry-” Ethan continued to sob,

“Me too. I am so sorry everyone!” Samantha screamed.

Irene could hear everyone cried and sobbed, muttering low voices,

“Thank you,” Albus said within his cries

“Thank you for being my friends,” he said in his small cries.

Julian’s breath ragged, “Let’s not do that again”,

“We only have each other,” he said in between tears too.

After that, everyone muttered ‘Thank you’ and ‘I am sorry’ toward each other. Only they knew how heartbreaking the meaning behind those simple words; I am sorry for being selfish, I am sorry for having a shallow mind, I am sorry for hurting you with my words, thank you for always there for me, thank you for willing to be with me, thank you for being my friends.

No one care that there were tens of people watched them sobbed and cried, no one care at all. All they knew that they would try to be a better friend for each other after that, try to understand each other, try to be always there for each other.

It took cricket and group studies to start a bond of friendship, it took quidditch and jealousy to severe the bond, and it took the death of a loved one to mend the broken bond.

\--

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's going to be Albus's perspective from now on with one or two chapters from another.


	11. Albus: Horrible Dreams, Dreadful Reality

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Oh please, try!”,
> 
> “Try to make me understand!”, Louis yelled again, “I will try my hardest to understand, I swear Albus!”.
> 
> “No” Albus answered shortly, “Nobody ever does”,
> 
> “Nobody ever will” he whispered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You have no idea how sorry I am about the 20+ days without an update. The concept of work from home changed into fulltime homework. It's suck...

\--

**Albus**

When Albus said the universe had never been on his side, he truly meant it. Feeling constant pain was one thing, but having constant nightmares while feeling constant pain was completely different. Some of those nightmares did have the same similarity though; the appearances of that-

_girl._

He couldn’t even describe what she was, but she definitely wasn’t human.

That’s for sure.

He wasn’t certain though whether the series of his nightmares were connected to _that room_ or not. He was sure there were many other people in the past who had found _that room_ way before him. And he was positive that there were many secret rooms scattered inside Hogwarts. Some of them might be harmless, some of them might be dangerous. Uncle Ron once told him about The Chamber of Secret, built by Salazar Slytherin to keep a monster called Basilisk inside it. 

The reason why he was wondering about the connection between his nightmares and that room was that after the night he slept in that room, some of his nightmares would be intercepted by the female figure’s appearances. It was almost like she purposely appeared within a certain point of time within his dream. And it became more frequent to occur after he seldom visited and slept in that room.

His friends had been so understanding all this time, covering his disappearances during the night times.

But with the new security protocol, things got different.

During Care of Magical Creature, Hagrid divided the class into groups and made them draw a freaking Knarl which he placed on top of the ground. Albus was paired with Julian and two other Hufflepuffs. They circled over a small tree farthest from the hut, attempted to draw the animal. It was an impossible task to do as their Knarl was going around and never stop moving, even with a lot of foods they gave to it. Albus was rather unmotivated since the beginning and so was Julian. In the end, his friend thought that it seemed a perfect time to settle things with Albus. 

“Hogwarts is a massive castle. I believe there are hundreds of rooms someone could find to- do something or sleep at night" Julian suddenly said to Albus.

Albus instantly turned his head at Julian.

"We do know that sometimes you didn’t sleep in the dorm. You did try your best though to make us think otherwise. Do you honestly think someone hasn’t realized that sometimes you crept into the bedroom at dawn? We aren’t deaf” he said in a quiet voice, made sure the Hufflepuffs didn’t hear them.

“Scorpius is worried sick about you as usual. But it’s getting hard to keep everyone at bay for you. As now, Irene also seems to like taking notices on you” Julian explained.

“Yeah, I know about that” Albus replied.

It’s hard not noticing a girl kept glancing at you all day, every day. It’s getting annoying to some degree.

“Any thought of confronting her soon?” Julian asked while keeping his eyes on the animal, hand kept busy sketching.

Albus fell silent for some time, staring at his own drawing before answered, “No, I haven’t thought about it”.

“Good” his friend answered, “That means you have conscience and understanding for other people’s feeling for you”,

“We’ve tried our best to understand that you need your own time and space to short your problems. But now, with the new security protocol implemented to each and every one of us, it’s a different situation. We can’t keep covering your- night adventures”,

“This time, I ask for your understanding of us. You can’t disappear from the dorm at night anymore” Julian said.

Somehow, Albus knew that this time would come.

“Yeah, understood” he answered Julian.

“Good- god damn it! Can this little crap stops moving?” He frustrated over the creature who kept going around the tree.

About thirty seconds later, Xavier approached them.

“You’ve finished?” Julian asked him.

“Of course. Since fifteen minutes ago, actually” Xavier answered, “my group has scattered” he nudged his head toward an area near another tree.

Albus peeked at the direction his friend nudged at; Estelle was lying on the group with the Hufflepuffs already absent from the area. “Have you taken the Knarl back to Hagrid?” he asked.

“Nope! As a matter of fact, it ran away somewhere” his friend answered, “Hagrid didn’t lie when he said that once it runs, it indeed runs fast”.

“Why the hell did it run away from you?” Julian asked confusedly.

“Estelle petrified it the second Hagrid turned his head from us” Xavier answered, “the Hufflepuff chick undo the spell after we finished drawing it. After that, it instantly ran away. We have no idea where it went away, though”.

“Why the hell I didn’t think of that?” replied Julian while retrieving his wand from the robe,

“ _Petrificus Totalus_!” he jinxed the animal.

In an instant, it stayed still right beside the tree.

“Hey!” one of the Hufflepuff on the other side of the tree yelled at Julian.

“What?”

“That’s mean Vorhees!”

“What part of it is mean?”

“You petrified an animal!”

Xavier chuckled, “A wizard petrified an animal is mean, Julian. Don’t you know that?” he said sarcastically

“Shut up Selwyn!” she yelled at Xavier

“Look, all of us are already losing our mind over this little crap. So, the two of you could either walk away from here and spent the rest of the time attempt to draw this animal from another group or you could just thank me and draw this twerp in peace” Julian answered calmly. 

It has been weeks since his last visit to the room and the _girl’s_ appearances became more frequent. He was so close to telling Scorpius but he held it off because of how weird it would sound.

_‘Hai Scorp. I’d like to tell you something. My nightmares have been haunted by a naked girl who could fly and somehow always end up hugging or kissing me by the end of the dream. Also, it happens more frequently now after I stop visiting a hidden room in the middle of an abandoned corridor. That’s where I’ve slept when I don’t want to sleep in our dorm. Why? Oh yeah, I am avoiding people these days because my body was slowly rotting away and I don’t want their pity. No big deal’_

No. Even there were some things he’d like to keep from Scorpius.

His health was the biggest one.

Months ago- when it started to happen, he would just drink some Cough Potion as many as it needed for the pain to go away. But after Christmas when his health began to deteriorate more, he would drink Cough Potion, Papperup potion, and pain reliever from retail. They didn’t help him that much but at least they put the constant pain at bay. And he was really thankful that a loyal friend helped him to get all those medicines.

But, before he could even breathe easier, one more problem came.

Louis found out about his condition.

They talked for a very long time and came to an agreement. Louis wouldn’t tell any people whom Albus wished didn’t know, but in exchange, he had to hand over all of his medicines to Louis. His cousin wanted to make sure that he didn’t abuse the medication dosage as well as regulate the consumption of them. As a result, Albus always drinks them right in front of Louis. Every day, they would meet twice; at noon after lunch and in the evening after dinner, no exception.

Louis was worried, he thought that Albus was on the borderline of being addicted to his own medicines, but of course Albus didn’t agree with him. Actually, there were a lot of things he didn’t agree with Louis. His cousin was trying hard to plant some ideas into his head. And frankly speaking, it annoyed him so much. He wasn’t a fool, he understood that Louis subtly wanted Albus to get closer to his family. He talked about how Grandma and Grandpa really expected his visit at Christmas, how Grandma made him a very special sweater, how everyone whined at her, and silently wanted his present to be theirs.

“I mean, I love Grandma so very much. But Fred’s sweater gives me a goosebump every time I look at it. The color is clashing with his hair. It makes him looks like a walking tomato. Mine is at least good.” Louis said.

Albus looked at Louis’s sweater he was currently wearing and wisely kept his mouth shut. If by Louis’s standard of ‘good’ was this hideous, he couldn’t imagine how Fred’s sweater looked like.

“Have you worn your sweater?” his cousin asked again,

“No, I haven’t” he answered,

Louis was hesitated a little bit, “Have you at least taken a look at it?” he asked.

“No-” Albus stopped for a moment, “not yet”.

“I see” Louis answered shortly.

The more Albus listened to Louis’s stories, the more he felt mixed feelings toward his family. At one point, there was a feeling of sorry toward everyone who- according to Louis genuinely cared about him. It only made him wanted to distance himself more from them out of the guilty for disappointing them over and over again.

To reduce a little bit of his guilt and disappointment over himself, he sent a letter to his grandmother and letting her know how grateful he was over her.

**_To Grandma,_ **

**_First, I’d like to say sorry for everything. I know that I’ve made you and mother sad about my behavior. Once again, I am so sorry._ **

**_Honestly, I do not know what I have you say to you except for how sorry I am right now._ **

**_Everyone has been telling me about your effort of making my Christmas sweater and how good it is. And I feel that I do not deserve it for one bit._ **

**_For the fact that I was born into this family, I should be thankful. But sometimes, I couldn’t erase a little tickling feeling within my heart about how uncomfortable everything is for me._ **

**_There were times when I would pray that I wasn’t born to mother and father. There were times when I would get my head downs, feeling guilty over the fact that I am not the same as everybody. There were times when I wish that I am a different person._ **

**_I’ve taken a look into the sweater you made for me. It’s really beautiful Grandma, thank you very much. I am very fond of the picture you embroidered on the front of it._ **

**_Once again, thank you very much, Grandma. I couldn’t imagine how tremendous your effort was in making it. And once again, I am so sorry._ **

**_Your Grandson,_ **

**_A.S.P_ **

For Albus, time was a funny thing. Just last month, he heard the rumor about James and Samantha from Lily. The boys discussed the matter for a very long time and from every perspective, it didn’t make sense. How could two polarize people even attracted to each other? Why did they hide it? How could they hide it? Those questions couldn’t be answered by any of them.

But that didn’t even matter. Ethan was too absorbed into his hatred to even discuss the matter. And frankly, Albus did too. Throughout the whole month, Albus never felt that he was more infuriated towards everything around him. Who knows what everybody was capable of hiding from him? In addition to being disgusted by Samantha and any of his female classmates, he also frustrated at Scorpius for seemingly unaffected by the news. Furthermore, he was angry at Louis because if the news was to be believed, there was no way Louis and Fred didn’t know about it.

“You know something, don’t you?!” Albus yelled at Louis.

Louis pressed his lips together, “It’s not my place to say something about it, Albus”.

“Yeah. But you do know and I am sure Fred also knows”.

“Whatever James decides, it’s up to him. I have no say about that”.

Albus chuckled, “What a funny guy you are, Louis. Taking away the things that clearly belong to me, threaten to spill my secret to my parents, dictate what I should do and shouldn’t do, while at the same time keep my brother’s secret from everyone and let him do whatever he wants”.

“This is different Al!” Louis said.

“HOW IS IT ANY DIFFERENT?!” Albus lost his patient, “IT’S MY OWN BUSINESS AND I SHOULD BE THE ONE THAT DECIDED TO DO WITH IT!”.

“Well, there’s a far difference between addicted to medicines and having a girlfriend!” Louis yelled.

“I AM NOT ADDICTED TO THE MEDICINES. I AM PERFECTLY FINE UNTIL YOU CAME IN!”.

“You are sick Al! You need help!”.

“I AM NOT!”.

“You are, Albus”.

“SHUT UP!”.

“Albus, please calm down…” his cousin said afterward.

“I am as calm as I will ever be!” Albus shot a hard stare at Louis.

“Why are so mad about your brother and your friend having a relationship?” Louis asked with desperation in his voice, “Why?!”.

Albus looked at Louis in the eyes for a long time before answered, “You’ll never understand”.

“Oh please, try!”,

“Try to make me understand!”, Louis yelled again, “I will try my hardest to understand, I swear Albus!”.

“No” Albus answered shortly, “Nobody ever does”,

“Nobody ever will” he whispered.

He left Louis without words after that and for the entire afternoon, Albus chose to walk around the ground to clear his mind. Although he knew that his feeling and actions were completely illogical as well as immature, he couldn’t stop them. The idea of him shared a mutual person with James somehow didn’t sit well with Albus.

To be honest, he and Samantha weren’t as close as he was with the boys. But she was still his friend, and his friend couldn’t be James’s friends-or girlfriend too at the same time. For the longest time, Albus finally could be comfortable and accepting his identity as a member of the Slytherin House. He finally could see people and things the same way as his housemates. He finally could make friends with them, joked around with them, and being part of them.

But this situation made him questioned himself again and again. How many things did Samantha tell James about him? What did they do behind his back? So many questions were circulating inside his head. They made him dizzy with resentment, anger, sadness, and disappointment.

“Kreacher” Albus called him.

CRACK!

Kreacher instantly appeared in front of him.

“Master Albus needs Kreacher?”

Albus smiled, “Yeah. I-I had a fight with Louis. Would you take my medicines from him?”

“Master Albus…” his house-elf said in a warning tone.

“Just for tonight Kreacher. After that, you can take them back to Louis” Albus sighed, “I just do not want to meet him for now”.

“Are you okay, Master?” he asked.

Albus gave Kreacher a look, “Come here, Kreacher. Sit beside me” he nudged an empty space right beside him.

The backyard field was one of Albus's favorite places in Hogwarts. The vast green field with thick grasses, the scenery of the surrounding forest and hills, and the black lake. There was no boundary for his visions and his breath felt lighter when he took the air from an open space.

The house-elf obediently sat beside him and looked at Albus. “Is there a problem Master Albus? Why are you sad?”.

“Do I look like I am sad?” Albus asked.

“Yes. Very sad” Kreacher replied.

“Oh, I don’t know. Rather than sad, I think I am more of irritated”.

“Why are you angry then?”.

Albus sighed loudly, “I just found out that my friend is having a relationship with James”.

“What?” Kreacher sounded he didn’t believe it.

“It’s unbelievable, isn’t it?” Albus said to the house-elf. 

“If Master Albus think so, then it is” Kreacher answered, “Does it make Master Albus uncomfortable?”.

“It’s not just making me uncomfortable” he replied, “It makes me angry. Very angry”.

Albus closed his eyes and took a deep breath. None of the things in the serene surrounding calmed him down. To be honest, he actually didn’t quite sure why he was mad. He just wanted to be. He didn’t like his friend associated with his brother. He wanted his world didn’t cross with any of his family. He wanted places, friends, and knowledge that only belong to him and him alone. Was that too much to ask?

“Does-” Kreacher’s voice made him turned his head.

“Does Master Albus want Kreacher to find out more about them?” the house-elf offered him.

He didn’t immediately answer, “You mean- you mean like, spying on them?”

“Yes” Kreacher answered without hesitation.

“But- to be honest, I am not concern about their privacy. But if you do that, wouldn’t that will tire you out?”.

“Kreacher would be fine, Master”.

“You have to handle my parents, my home, and now you have to go back and forth to Hogwarts just to spy on my brother and his ‘supposed’ to be girlfriend”,

“No, Kreacher. I don’t want to trouble you” Albus looked at Kreacher, “You should enjoy things when you aren’t taking care of my family”.

By this time, Kreacher’s eyes were slightly wet from tears, “Master Albus is the gentlest”.

“I am not” he replied, “I am the most horrible of all them”.

“Don’t say that. Kreacher knows that’s not true. Kreacher promises he would find out the full story of Master James and his girlfriend”.

“Kreacher-” Albus tried to stop him.

“You don’t have to worry, Master Albus. Kreacher would be fine”,

“Kreacher will take care of you”.

Stephanie’s grandfather’s death shifted the atmosphere into a rather awkward situation for him and his classmates. There was no resentment toward Samantha or anyone anymore. Only guilt, guilt, and more guilt toward themselves. Stephanie became extremely quiet and the girls tried their best to always cheer her up, never leave her side. Ethan’s bandage was lifted after a week, but his right hand was still too weak for carrying heavy stuff and too stiff for writing many notes.

There wasn’t any school agenda anymore except O.W.L for the fifth year and N.E.W.T for the seventh year. And so, everyone started to study more than usual for the annual tests. The hype of Gryffindor’s victory of the House Cup somehow wasn’t as loud as last year. In which, Albus refused to believe it was due to James’s influence.

His brother unpredictable presence around him and his friends made Albus awfully uncomfortable, even just by mare seconds to fetch Samantha somewhere or exchange pleasantry with Jefferson whenever they were in the Great Hall. Since when did James knew Jefferson to the point of them exchange some chit chat?!

Unfortunately, his friends seemed didn’t care about it, even Scorpius!

“Oh, come on Al. Your brother is just coming here for Samantha. He wouldn’t stay around for more than a minute or so” said Scorpius during lunchtime.

Albus and Scorpius turned their head toward the girls and James. If his brother felt the awkward, disgusted stare from the other Slytherins, he didn’t show it. Samantha who sat beside Stephanie patted her back gently and said goodbye to the other girls before getting up. James held her hand and they walked toward the exit of the Great Hall before turned their way and disappeared.

“It still weird” Albus murmured.

“Don’t let things as mundane as a couple troubled you, Albus” Scorpius advised him.

“I know, Scorp. It’s just-”.

“Of course, I understand. But if you ask me, they do seem happy Al. And that means you worry over nothing”.

“But Kreacher said-”.

“Kreacher wasn’t sure either when he said that there was something unrealistic about James and Samantha. And no- don’t tell me otherwise. I was there when he reported to you” Scorpius replied.

Albus sighed, looking at his lunch which he didn’t have any appetite to eat.

“Look Al, I just don’t want you to stress out even more. Your nightmares are already a huge problem for you”.

“Don’t remain me about it!” he stabbed the small potatoes on his plate.

The night after the funeral, his nightmare got so bad. He actually screamed in his sleep and got Scorpius and Xavier up. He was sweating and panting heavily after Xavier got him up from his sleep. Albus said to his friends that it probably happened due to the aftereffect of attending the funeral. Xavier seemed to get convince a little but Scorpius clearly didn’t believe any of it.

Luckily for him, Scorpius never pressing Albus about the matter. Although he knew that his best friend wanted to ask him many questions, he wasn’t ready to open up about all the stuff that happened to him. Everything was just too much for him; the guilt for his family, the guilt for his friends, the guilt for his past mistakes, the guilt for wanting to cut everyone out, the guilt for not knowing his own self, and the guilt for making everyone around him miserable.

The night after that, he dreamed of Delphine.

_“Hello again, Albus” she greeted him._

_Albus shook his head slowly, looked aghast by the figure in front of him, “No…. no…” he murmured,_

_“Go away… Go away from me!” he screamed to her._

_Delphine smiled, “It seems that you are still the same Albus whom I met sometimes ago. Albus who joined my adventures”._

_“NO! GO AWAY FROM ME!”,_

_“I HATE YOU! I DON’T WANT TO MEET YOU EVER AGAIN!”._

_Albus turned his body and started to run in the endless darkness of his dream. No land to hold his feet and no light to guide his eyes. Only darkness surrounded and haunted him._

_He ran with all his might, only to meet Delphine again in front of him._

_“You are indeed do not change even for a bit, Albus. Still a pathetic coward” she said._

_“I DON’T CARE!”._

_Albus turned to another direction and ran again, but soon Delphine’s figure appeared in front of him._

_“What a pathetic liar. You do care, for what I say. For what everyone says, actually”._

_His breath became so heavy that he felt he couldn’t run away again, “SAY WHATEVER YOU WANT! I KNOW ALL THE THING YOU SAY WAS A LIE!” he yelled at Delphine’s figure._

_“You are correct. Everything I ever said to you was a lie” she replied calmly, “Yet, you believed all of that”,_

_Delphine smiled, “You are so easily be riled, so easily be manipulated”,_

_“You are weak”._

_Albus clutched both of his ears with his palm, desperately wanted to never hear any of her words again._

_The older girl walked to him, “That’s what you are, Albus. A weak coward”._

_“STOP! STOP IT!” Albus yelled at her._

_“A stupid failure who never meets anyone’s expectations”._

_“SHUT UP! STOP!”._

_“Especially your father’s”._

_“SHUT UUUUUP!” Albus marched toward her and intended to punch her, but the figure quickly disappeared._

_“See?” her voice was heard again, although Albus couldn’t see her figure anywhere, “so easily be riled”._

_“SHOW YOURSELF, YOU COWARD!” Albus screamed into nothing._

_Delphine chuckled, “Look who is talking”,_

_“You are the coward one, Albus. A stupid, failure, and a coward”._

_“NO! YOU ARE THE STUPID ONE!”._

_“Am I? Hahahahaha” Delphine laughed._

_Suddenly, Albus’s body was getting thrown into the air and tossed below. It was so fast and so strong, by the time his body touch a hard surface, he felt that every fiber inside his body was being thorned apart, every bone inside him was broken. He was in such immense pain, but the only thing that he could do was crying. A small stream of tears come out of his eyes, cascading his nose, his lips, and his chin._

_She was right, Albus thought. He was a weak coward, a failure, and black sheep of the great Potter Family. If only he could disappear…_

_Then, a blue light started to appear from below his body. The surface gradually transformed into water and instead of a hard surface, Albus now floating on the surface of the water._

_Albus knew it was the time she came to him. And true to his belief, the figure was immerging from below the water with only half of her body was above the water surface. She got closer to his body and place one of her palms on his chest while her other palm caressing his hair. Her radiant face looked so sad while looking at his state. Her blue hair was cascading her head, her shoulders, and her chest which Albus knew was bare as in any of his other dreams. The only piece of clothing she had was a silver color necklace with a blue crook moon pendant._

_“Oh, my dearest Albus” she said to him,_

_“Why you have to go through all of this?” her angelic voice murmured in concern tone, her hands now busy caressing his face and body._

_Albus took a short breath and sighed, he felt so dreadful inside._

_“You came again…” he managed to say the words, albeit in a crack, painful voice._

_“Of course, I will always come Dear Albus” she said while looking at him in his eyes._

_“Who are you?” Albus asked a question which he always throws at her every single time she appeared in his horrible dreams._

_And as in any of his other dreams, she smiled and replied, “Don’t you worry about that. One day we will meet and we could get to know each other”,_

_“And then we’ll kiss each other, love one another, and live together forever” she answered,_

_He never understands her words nor he never thought about it,_

_At least in the reality._

_But within his own dream, he often thought about it while the lovely figure took care of him._

_“What do you want from me?” he asked the figure._

_She smiled at him and took one of his palms into hers, “Come with me, Albus. I promise you wouldn’t feel any of pain anymore” she said calmly,_

_“Every day would be a delightful day for you and me”,_

_“No enemy to hurt you, no family to judge you, no one to disappoint you. Only you and me, together in happiness, forever” she kissed his palm._

_Albus knew after that, she would start to shower him with butterfly kisses. And that was exactly what she did. By this point, Albus didn’t feel a single pain anymore, but his body felt numb. He couldn’t move any of his limbs and couldn’t mutter a single word._

_The figure decided to immerse her full body above the water and sat above the water. Her hair was dry despite her coming from the water itself. She stroked both of his cheeks and get her face closer to his. She smiled lovingly to him kissed him on his lips._

As usual, Albus woke up right after she kissed him. Until this point, he was convinced that his dreams only follow two types of patterns. It was either his dreams were plagued by painful experience from start to finish or meeting a random traumatic person and _she_ came after that. Both were terrible and Albus only wished they would stop. He desperately wanted them to stop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's Albus again next chapter. See you!


	12. Albus: Sinking

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Albus felt his consciousness was fading away.
> 
> And kept fading away.
> 
> The last thing he saw was Irene’s black almond eyes.
> 
> And then everything was black.

\--

**Albus**

The next day, Louis came to approach him again after lunch. Albus reluctantly followed him to the usual spot of their meeting. None of them spoke for some minutes before Albus swallowed his ego and apologized to Louis.

“I am sorry” he said while scratching the back of his neck, “For yelling at you some weeks ago and for giving you cold shoulder ever since. You didn’t deserve it”.

Louis clasped both of his hand together, “I-” he hesitated,

“I am so sorry to you too, Al” he replied.

“Nah, you did not do anything wrong, Lou” Albus said, “You are just trying to help me. I understand it now”.

“No, Albus. I-” his cousin took a deep breath before continuing,

“I am really sorry. What you said was true and every word you threw at me was justifiable”.

Albus didn’t reply him because he knew that his cousin hadn’t finished talking yet.

“You have every right to actually mad at me- and frankly everyone in our family” Louis looked at Albus briefly and then turned his head away from him, “It’s true. We never understand you or at least tried to” he said as if he was really ashamed of the revelations.

“All these years… we never did. All of us; me, Freddie, Rose, Hugo, Molly, Lucy, Roxanne, Dom, Vicky, even James, and Lily”,

“All of us knew how- how badly you were treated by our friends and by other people since your early days. Yet we never-” he stopped his words,

“We often sit comfortably together in the common room, telling stories of ours to each other, giving advice to one another. But then I realized, we never talked about you”,

“It’s like you are invisible to us. Or at least, we try hard to make you invisible from our sight. Something taboo to even being mentioned. Something everyone avoids to think about”,

“And now I realize how unfair it is to you” Louis said, “I imagine how frustrating it is for you. To be always preached about the importance of family, blood, and bond”,

“Yet none of us-”,

“I am ashamed of myself Al. I am truly sorry; I am sorry that all this time I-” Louis couldn’t finish his words to Albus.

Albus sighed, bowed his head to the floor, “It’s not your fault” he said Louis, “There’s nothing wrong being bystanders. There’s nothing to forgive”.

“I am so sorry, Albus” Louis apologized to him again.

And now, it’s time for Albus to try telling his feeling with a cool head- unlike the last time. “I- Of course, there was a time when I would curse myself. How everything would be easier for everybody if I was… became _one of you_ ” he started,

 _‘A Gryffindor’_ Albus thought.

“I would lie to myself if I never curse each and every one of you too” Albus confessed,

“It was really hard for me, seeing all of you being worshipped by everyone. Seeing all of you try so hard to never look at me”,

“But I have to confess too. There were so many times when I would pray that suddenly the sorting hat gets an epiphany, say that he was wrong for sorting me to Slytherin” Albus tried to joke.

Louis smiled a little even with a somber face, “Nah..”.

“Of course, I know that would never happen” Albus replied.

“If you ever think that all of us are hypocrites, I wouldn’t disagree with you” his cousin said,

“It’s a hard pill to swallow, but it’s true. Albus Potter, the black sheep of our family; we do not speak of him. That’s our unsaid words”.

“Well, I am not a sheep. I am a snake” Albus said to Louis.

His cousin smirked, “Yes you are”,

“A Slytherin through and through, if I may say” he said, “Seeing you having friends beside Scorpius, I think it shocked everyone at some point”.

Albus chuckled quietly, “Last year, it would be unbelievable, isn’t it?”.

“Totally” Louis said. He turned his head to Albus and placed one of his hands on Albus’s shoulder, “You are doing great with your friends, Al. It seems that you truly earn your place as one of them”,

“And of course, it’s uncomfortable for you for seeing your brother and one of your friends dating”.

“It’s not uncomfortable. It’s upsetting” Albus corrected him. He sighed before continued “I- ” he sighed again,

“I- didn’t hate the idea of James and Samantha dating” he looked at Louis,

“I just hate that- when I finally could feel being accepted as a part of something, the one that could see me as my own person-”,

“James has to barge into the door, connecting himself with me in a way. And it’s so upsetting because frankly, I don’t want to be part or associate myself with any of you”.

Louis smirked, “And here we think that we don’t want you to be part of us”.

Albus shook his head, “Not really. I think it’s just my coping mechanism of being the runt litter of our family. All of you don’t want me and in exchange, I fight back by not wanting any of you near my life too”.

“Well, to be honest, that’s fair” Louis said, “A little concern from me personally though. Most of your friends are- coming from the other side of the allegiance” he carefully chose his words.

The younger was chuckling, “You take it too far on the word _‘most’_. It’s only five of them; half of my classmates”.

“Really?” Louis sounded genuinely confused.

“Yeah” Albus looked at his fingers to count, “Scorp, Samantha, Stephanie, Xavier, and Ethan. Five of them, although Ethan’s family were actually more on the neutral side”.

“Seriously?”

“Totally”

Louis looked at him confusedly and then pointed his finger at him, “You haven’t counted the Rosier girl. So, it’s six”.

“It’s five Lou. Irene’s family didn’t take part in any wars; the second or even the first”.

“How cou-”

“Her great grandmother ran from France with her baby boy to Japan right after Grindelwald was defeated. Her part of the family was innocent”.

“Huh…” Louis smiled, “Well, Rose doesn’t think so though. You have no idea how spectacular Rose curses her in every chance she gets”,

He chuckled, “One might think she is obsessed”.

“She doesn’t get used of sharing her spotlight with anyone” Albus commented.

“Sadly, yes. On one side, it’s the pressure of being the daughter of The Minister but on the other side, I think she genuinely enjoys being in the limelight”.

Louis sighed, “I want to say that I am relieved Al. It seems that you have found some great friends of your very own”. 

“I think so too. The way they think and acts, their sense of humor; they are my kind of people” Albus replied with a small smile in his lips.

“Well, let’s thank the sorting hat for that” his cousin suggested.

Both of them chuckled for that and then Louis handed Albus his dose of medicines for the afternoon. Albus's health wasn’t improving whatsoever, but at least he didn’t have to feel pain all the time; thanks to all of the pills and potions. Between having regular nightmares and being chocked by your own blood, got to breathe easily for a few hours a day was a blessing for him.

The medicines bitterness was clinging to his tongue all day and any meals he eat weren’t so appetizing anymore. Some people live for the sake of eating, and some were eating for the sake of living. And of course, Albus got into the later one. Sometimes, it was really hard to force himself of eating as simple as a loaf of bread. And he himself realized that he was in a far more serious situation than the first time he collapsed on that day on Diagon Alley.

_“Damn…”_

“She knows” Albus said to his cousin.

“What- who knows what?” Louis asked, seemingly confused than before.

“Irene” he replied, “She knows about me”,

“Way before you and way before Kreacher” Albus said, “She is probably the first person to know about me actually”.

“How?!” Louis almost yelled.

“The first time it happened was when I was in Diagon Alley last winter. Long story short, we ran to each other while I was choking on blood. Collapsing behind a store and she watched the whole thing”,

“She offered me her water, actually. And said that I should go to the hospital after that”.

“That… was nice of her” Louis commented, “Not to mention that she was right about the hospital thing”.

Albus smirked, “You know-”

“It’s complicated. I get it little cousin” Louis said before Albus could finish his words.

“Well, it’s almost time for my appointment with Professor Longbottom” Louis said to him.

“Whatever for?”

“Carrier assistance and other O.W.L kinds of stuff”.

“Ah… Do your best then”.

“I’ll try my hardest and besets. Ugh, everything is getting annoying” he said, “So, I’ll see you tonight, here. As usual”

“Yup! Eight o’clock as usual”

With that, the cousins bid their farewell with a promise to meet again later in the evening.

He spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around the castle ground by himself. Scorpius and the others were in the common room, enjoying weekends by playing cards and chess. He planned to go to the woods in the north of the Black Lake and harvesting some wild valerian roots.

He knew about it because of an accident. Some months ago, his friends visiting a small lawn and played cricket. They talked about it so much and it made Albus almost regret not joining the picnic. One day he tried to visit the place secretly, without any of his friends. Turned out, the path was not easy to discover and he was wandering around the woods for some time. Albus gave up for finding the small field and instead discovered some wild potion ingredients.

After stepping outside the backyard, he could see Hagrid’s hut from afar. He narrowed his eyes as he saw two familiar figures walking hand in hand to the hut’s direction; James and Samantha. He watched the two of them as James whispering something in Samantha’s ear and then his friend punched James’s arm playfully.

His brother laughed out loud and then circled his left arm around Samantha’s shoulder, pulled her closer to him. Albus continued to watch them until they arrived in front of Hagrid’s hut. James knocked on the door and he backed off to wait. His brother's head turned to Samantha and suddenly he kissed her forehead. The blonde nudged her elbow to James’s side. Hagrid opened the door right after that and signaled the couple to get inside.

Albus stood there in silence, looking at the scene.

 _“James even brings Samantha to meet Hagrid”_ Albus thought.

He resumed his walks toward the woods while thinking about the earlier scene the saw. Kreacher who spying on them for him said that James and Samantha’s relationship was odd. He said to Albus that there were times where they would discuss what would they say if people ask them some questions. That was indeed odd.

There were times when Albus wondered that maybe their relationship was not a hundred percent true. Maybe they were lying to everybody about the story, maybe _some parts_ of the stories were true and some were not. Or maybe, _all of them_ were not true.

But seeing James brought Samantha to Hagrid’s place?

Now that was _the real odd_.

Hagrid was a dear friend of their family. James wouldn’t just bring his girlfriends to meet and spent time with Hagrid. It was almost like he was introducing Samantha to their family circle.

_“Is he really serious about her?”_

Albus was already inside the woods when the sky was having a vanilla twilight. The path into the wild valerian trees was covered with short grasses and damn soil. He could see some of the owls were flying away above him.

“Hey there buddy” Albus said to the valerian tree.

“I hope you don’t mind me taking a few of your roots”,

“Just… a little”

He dug the soil a little to take the young, fresh roots from the tree. The smell of the valerian root was calming and sweet. Albus ended up taking thee rods of roots, each one about twelve centimeters.

“Thank you” he murmured to the tree and got up.

Suddenly, he felt something.

Or someone.

Watching him.

Albus looked at the right and then left. Nothing.

He turned around and nothing was there.

His heartbeat was faster while his body was as still as stone.

The feeling came again.

He was being watched.

 _“Oh Lord, please…”_ he thought to himself.

He slowly turned around and walked away.

As he walked, he heard a sound of rustle and that was the moment he was one hundred percent positive, someone or something was following him.

Step by step, he tried to be as calm as possible. If he ran now, he would be at in a disadvantage as the thick trees, bushes, and grasses could trip him. Once he stepped out of the woods, he’ll run as fast as he possibly could.

Crack… crack…

 _“Calm down Albus, calm down”_ he thought to himself.

 _“Stupify, Reducto, Stupify, Reducto,”_ he muttered the incantations inside his head and remembering the wand movement.

If the time came when he had to fight, he just hoped he’ll do it right.

_“If I couldn’t do it-”_

He walked as if he didn’t realize the figure was following him.

Step by step.

 _“Just a little more”_ he murmured.

“Albus!” a voice called him.

He was startled so much and even gasp out loud, “Oh God!”.

He turned his head to the left and saw someone standing there.

She wore a bright blue t-shirt, covered with a thin black cardigan. Her skirt was ended up in her mid-thigh and her black boots were smeared with soil here and there. The long black hair was tied in a high ponytail.

And her golden pendant necklace was resting in between her chest.

Irene.

“Irene” he greeted her.

His heart was still beating very fast.

“What are you doing here?” Irene asked him,

“Well, what are you doing here?!” Albus almost yelled at her.

_“So, it’s her?”_

“I- I just coming back from fertilizing my trees”

“Your trees?”

“Yeah. In the Picnic Meadow” she pointed toward her backside.

Albus almost collapsed out of relief. God, he thought that it’s a danger.

“You shouldn’t wander around the woods alone” he said to her.

“That’s unfair. You wandering around alone too” she replied.

Albus approached her and stood in front of her, “I’d like to say that just give me a heartache, you know”.

“Why would I?” she asked confusedly.

“I just- Ugh, never mind” he said dismissively.

“You just what?”

“I- are you following me?” Albus asked her.

“Of course, no!” she said to him, “Why do you think that I am?” Irene asked.

“Because I- Oh I don’t know, feeling being followed by someone. And the fact-”

“Albus-”

“-that you indeed always-”

“Al-”

“watching- what?” he looked at Irene’s eyes.

His eyes didn’t meet hers, as she looked through his shoulders’ direction.

Albus’s mind instantly worked and sense the danger that he felt from some time ago.

It wasn’t Irene.

Something or someone was standing behind him and Irene was looking at it.

_"Oh God-"_

“What is it?” Albus whispered to her.

“A man” she answered with the voice so low he barely heard her.

“How far?”,

“Far- far enough” her voice was trembling now.

Albus’s wand was inside his jacket’s inner pocket and he slowly reached it. Irene’s left hand which was covered by his body was slowly reaching the inner pocket of her cardigan too.

“Haah” Irene’s gasp and there was a little tear at the corner of her eyes.

She was scared of whatever she saw.

Albus’s breath was also started to rage now.

Three

Two

One

“STUPIFY!” Irene shouted while pointing her wand through his shoulder.

Irene turned her body and with instinct, both of them started to run.

“Hahhh”

“Haaah”

They ran as fast as the could through the thick tall grasses.

Albus could hear the sound of someone behind them ran toward them too.

“Haaah”

“Haah”

“Haah!”

Creak

Creak

Creak

The ran and ran, Albus braced himself, and without looking nor slowing his run, he pointed his wand behind him and yelled,

“REDUCTO!”.

He didn’t know whether or not the spell hit their chaser. But one thing for sure, they didn’t slow down.

At last, Albus could see a vast open field in front of him.

The Meadow.

“Haaahh”

“Haaaah”

Both of them panting but keep running.

Albus cursed as it was actually cornered both of their movement. He could see the black lake right in front of them.

Oh God-

He and Irene stopped at the edge of the field, cornered between whoever their chaser was and the cliff.

“Haaaah”

“Haaaah”

Both of them panting hard.

“Oh- Haaaah God- haaaah haaaah. Al haaah I- Haaa” Irene clutched her chest hard.

“Haaah Haaahhh. It’s haaaah dead haaahh end” Albus said while panting so hard.

His lungs were burning from the excessive running and he felt like he could burst anytime now.

Albus looked at his behind and he could see a silhouette of a man entering the field. He couldn’t see his face clearly but the body was enormous. His head was covered with a piece of cloth, he wore a seemingly leather coat and boots. His shirt and pants were dirty and disheveled.

And for his horror, he was carrying something that seemed to be a wand.

“What- haaah should we- haaah” Irene attempted to ask.

BOOM!

The ground not far from them was exploded and burnt. The spell missed them.

“JUMP!” Albus cried.

“Wh-what?!” Irene asked.

“We couldn’t fight him. Come on!” Albus said to Irene and jumped on the cliff into the water.

BLOB!

His body was touching the water when he heard Irene’s small crying and followed by the sound of her body touching the water as well.

“Al!” Irene cried reaching her hands to him.

“Come on!” He swam with one of Irene’s hand clutched into his jacket.

“Albus!” she cried.

“Don’t stop! Don’t look back!”

BOOM!

SPLASH!

There was an explosion that happened behind them on the water surface.

“Albus!” Irene cried.

“Just swim, don’t stop!”

“Albus I can’t swim well- don’t-”

“What!- I-”

BOOM!

BOOM!

SPLASH!

“Aaaal!”

Amid the dire situation, something worse happened. Albus’s feet were suddenly entangled by something from the water. And it pulled him-

“AL!” Irene grabbed both of Albus’s hands as he was submerged into the water.

Albus also grabbed Irene’s hands strongly too and they both drawn into the lake.

Whatever that pulled Albus was really strong.

And fast.

They both were sinking into the lake, deeper and deeper at a very fast pace.

Albus could see Irene's scared face but she didn’t lose her grip on Albus’s hands. She held her breath while looking at Albus with the frightened eyes.

Deeper

Deeper

Irene was trying to reach her wand after took one of her grips from his hand when he felt his lungs were burning.

By the time Irene was successful at retrieving her wand, something Albus hated so much happened.

He coughed with blood.

His mouth was opened and the water came into his mouth.

Irene’s face was splashed by his blood and she looked more frightened than before.

He coughed again and more blood came out.

More water came in.

Everything happened so fast.

He felt his lungs were filled with water.

Albus felt his consciousness was fading away.

And kept fading away.

The last thing he saw was Irene’s black almond eyes.

And then everything was black.

\--


	13. Louis: The Counsellor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I didn’t see her at dinner either” she clearly wanted to cry.
> 
> The other three people looked at each other and now was the time to feel real panicked. One Head Girl didn’t sure how she felt about the situation. One cousin felt a pang of anxiety. Two close friends clearly seemed distressed. And two people were clearly missing.

Louis: The Counsellor

\--

When Louis was eleven, he began to learn important things from his father. One of them was the art of listening and shutting his mouth when people were talking or fighting or shouting. Being the last child of his small family and surrounded by loud older sisters gave him the perfect environment to develop that skill. From his mother, he learned that giving advice to the people he cared about was one way to show how much he loved them. But the thing was, he was suck at giving advice. People tended to interpret the things he said completely different from what he meant.

During her sixth-year, Vicky fed up on how Teddy was pulling and pushing their relationship. They weren’t officially girlfriend and boyfriend, but they were definitely more than just friends. They both knew they loved each other, and she couldn’t understand why Teddy hadn’t asked her out yet. Teddy would be graduated from Hogwarts just a few months away and Vicky got scared, that she would be tossed away once he met other women outside.

Vicky was ranting for more than an hour in front of eleven years-old Louis, and he started to get a little dizzy from all of her shouting.

And so, he gave her an advice, “Just take the control then, don’t wait around. Do something that make him never forget you forever!. You are a strong, independent girl”.

“Do you think I could do that?” Vicky asked,

“Certainly” he replied.

What he meant that time, was so that Vicky could tell Teddy what she wanted; official and steady relationship. But in Victories’ mind, his advice was translated into made love with Teddy as a parting memory of him from Hogwarts.

“Just as you said, I took the control. I was on top” his seventeen years old sister said to eleven years-old him.

He wished he could forget that.

That summer, the two of them couldn’t keep their hands off each other and got caught by his mother once. Teddy's grandmother was summoned to his house and the two of them were getting their ears off by the two older women. Louis was there when it happened, playing chess with his father who chose not to participate in any of ‘The Talk’.

Another time, Dom was having an existential crisis. She had it enough that people couldn’t shut up about her and Vicky. People, especially their mother’s relatives always compared her to her sister; ‘Dom, how could you turn out so different than your gentle sister?’, ‘Vicky is so sweet and girly, while you are so brass’, ‘Your sister Vicky is a perfect lady, you should take note from her’.

Once, Dom got so mad by Aunt Gabrielle’s words and threw a whole Christmas cake to the wall.

They’ve never spent any holiday in France ever since.

She also felt that their parents focus too much on him that they didn’t give a damn about her. Louis wanted to argue that wasn’t true, but he remembered what his father used to say; **_‘you don’t get to argue over somebody’s feeling’._**

Louis let Dom pouring her heart out before carefully said to her, “I am so sorry that you felt that way toward us, Dom. If you feel that we never appreciate you, maybe other people outside would make you feel the opposite”.

“Well, don’t worry about that. After I get out of Hogwarts, I’ll immediately left the house. Everyone wouldn’t mind if I live as a hobo for the rest of my life, would you?!” she answered spitefully.

“Come on, Dom. You know that’s not what I mean”

“Then what is it that you mean?!”

“You are not Victorie, you are Dominique. You have your own colors and charisma like no other, even Vicky. I am sure you’ll find a way to use your real potential”

“Like what is it exactly?” his sister demanded,

Louis gulped; Dom was sure charismatic to the borderline of terrifying if she wanted. And to be honest, he didn’t actually know what he was talking about. That was just a diplomatic answer everyone could pull off. But since his sister asked him specifically, he had no idea how to answer it without offending his Dom.

“You emm- are great at singing. Vicky couldn’t even pass the first octave without having a falsetto. Maybe- juuuuust maybe ahahahha” he answered it while kind of joking.

Except, Dominique didn’t see it as a joke.

After graduating Hogwarts, she left home immediately to start a band with a couple of her friends. On the first Christmas after she left, she came back home with her hair cut in pixie style and dyed in electric blue. His mother was in full shock while his father only smirked amusingly.

Her band were performing in pubs and café as main income, while working their way to sign a record deal. Just two months ago, Louis got a letter that her band signed a contract with an agency and working their way to find a suitable music colors and songs for her bands.

On summer right after Dom’s graduation, she and Vicky got into a huge fight. Something about woman’s principal or something along that kind of stuff. Vicky believed that oneself would never truly feel complete without the one they loved; Dom called that a bullshit. Dom said that it was such a disgrace for a twenty first century modern woman to be so dependent to a man, and that hurt Vicky’s feeling.

While they shouting to one another upstairs, Louis and his father were playing chess downstairs. Their mother was off, having a grocery shopping with Aunt Angelina.

“Dad?” Louis called him,

“Hmmm?” his father hummed, looking really seriously at the chessboard.

“Shouldn’t you- ?” he asked while pointing his finger into upward.

Dom and Vicky’s argument were escalating into clothes and stuffs now, and Louis had a feeling they’ll started to bring their friends and boyfriends into the argument.

“No, I will not” his father answered calmly. 

“Why?” he asked curiously.

“Son, haven’t you listened to them for the past hour?” he asked, in which Louis nodded as answer, “They argue about woman’s principal. And the last time I checked, I am a man”,

“I didn’t fit into the picture of their argument”.

“But you are their father” Louis argued.

“Correct. But they don’t argue as sisters- which me, as a father could fit to interfere. They argue as women. I know nothing about being a woman, son” he ruffled Louis’s hair,

“Don’t be a bigger person when you know nothing about the problem”,

Louis nodded and his father smiled, “Also between me and you- as man to man surrounded by loud women; If you could focus on thinking about what’s right in front of you,” he pointed the chessboard, “while they are yelling to one another, you would be able to focus on anything; anywhere and anytime. Trust me” he said,

“YOU ARE SO STUPID!” Dom shouted,

“OH! AND YOU THINK YOU ARE SO COOL?!” Vicky screamed.

The fight way escalated from woman to woman into witch to witch.

After hearing a window’s glass scattered, his father had no choice but to put them to stop.

Later at night, the fight turned into girl’s reconciliation stuff with her mother as the moderator. The three of them talked and talked and talked in Vicky’s bedroom. Dom admitted that she felt so sick of hearing other people compared her to Vicky and that she felt so inferior toward her. Everyone said Vicky this and Vicky that, which made Dom felt she wasn’t even a human with feeling to anyone. She tried to be so different to Vicky in every way possible as a coping mechanism.

Vicky confessed that she felt people was so unfair to her and always looked down on her. She didn’t have any ambition to be a fancy career woman. She liked to cook like Grandma Molly and wanted to own a restaurant, where everyone could enjoy a good meal. One day, when she has a family of her own, she wanted to stay at home and doing things like gardening and stuff. But because she was the first born Weasley in their generation, people always expect great things from her.

All she ever wanted was caring for people and bringing them together.

But the world was cruel for both of them. People pushed them to become the people they weren’t.

After hours of teary confession, the two of them got advice from their mother that being a woman didn’t have to be either a domestic or a hard-carry career centered. There were things in between the two and although it was hard to balance between the two things, as the time passed, they would find that balance point.

At night, the three of them sleep together in Vicky’s bedroom- as three women in this tough world.

TOK TOK TOK

“Come in”,

Louis came into the room in which Professor Longbottom sitting behind his desk, already waiting for him.

“Ah, Mr. Weasley! Finally!”

“Am I late Professor?” he asked while sitting on the chair in front of his desk.

“No, not at all. Miss. Clearwater was just come out about two minutes ago” he answered,

“Yeah, I saw her in the corridor” he said.

Professor Longbottom smiled, “Let’s begin, shall we?”,

“So, any dream or path life in mind?” he asked Louis.

Louis shook his head as answer.

“Any some short of insight from your family?” The Herbology Professor asked, “You got a lot to pick up from”.

“I- I think I have too many examples to pick up from and it makes me confuse over everything” he carefully confessed,

“I’ve heard stories about how it is to become an Auror from Uncle Harry, Uncle Ron, and Teddy. I’ve heard how hard it is living as a curse breaker from my father and how annoying it is to have a job at the ministry from Uncle Percy and Aunt Hermione”,

“Other things like a quidditch player or journalist or dragon tamer are out of question. So, I am actually still blind about what I actually want to be, Professor” he ended his words.

“What about your sisters?” he asked, “They both have remarkable academic scores, if I remember correctly” he smiled at him.

“Yeah, they did” Louis replied, “And both of them know what they truly want to do in their life”.

“How are they today?”.

“Vicky is learning how to cook professionally in a muggle culinary school. Dom wants to continue living with her band” he answered.

Professor Longbottom chuckled, “God! Louis, your sisters are really something. Especially Dom”.

“Yeah, she’s fearless” he remarked.

“Well, looking at your academic scores, I must say that anything is possible to you” Neville said.

“That is if I could pass the O.W.Ls” he sighed,

“Well, I wouldn’t worry about that. Just relax and be yourself” the professor suggested, “you’ll do great”.

“Everyone says so, but I am not sure about that” Louis argued.

“Exam anxiety is perfectly normal, Louis”.

Louis pursed his lips and nodded.

“Well, we’ve tried to dig from your external surrounding. How about now we try to look inside you. What do you desire most in life?”

That was surprisingly a very hard question to answer for Louis. He never asked himself that question. What did he wanted to do? What did he wanted himself to be?

“Last year James answered freedom and thrill” Professor Longbottom said to him.

Louis rolled his eyes, “That sounds like him”, it literally didn’t surprise Louis one bit.

“He also answered _‘a true love’_ ” Neville said quietly.

Now, that surprised Louis.

“It’s surprising, isn’t it? That’s why I remember it until this day”,

“I am sure you want something in your life, for your own self. Something that maybe would make you shy or insecure if other people know about it”.

Louis chewed his lips, “I just want- peace” he said quietly, “But with a bit of challenge still”,

“I want to be useful for people around me” he said while his eyes wondering around, not sure on what he said.

“That’s great, Louis. Is helping makes you happy?” Professor Longbottom asked,

He thought for sometimes and carefully arranged his words, “Emm rather than makes me happy, I could say that it makes me feel peaceful. But at the same time, I don’t want to just sit around enjoying that peace”.

“That’s a start. There are many careers around helping people but still challenging in a way”,

“Do you like animals?” he asked Louis.

Louis shook at an instant, “Care of Magical Creature is the first subject in my list that I want to drop next year”.

Professor Longbottom laughed, “Yeah, you don’t seem the type to go into that direction”,

“Now that I think about it, you don’t seem to be the type that would be content to just sit around doing office work either” he said to Louis.

Louis agreed.

“Well, the answer to that is simple then” The Professor said, “Your Herbology, Charm, and Transfiguration are top-notch. You have to work a little bit harder for Potion though”

“May I ask what is in your mind, Sir?” he asked Neville.

“If what you just told me truly come from the bottom of your heart, I think you’ll make a great healer. A doctor” he said to Louis.

Healer? Doctor?

His mind instantly wondered to Albus.

For Louis, hiding something as important as someone’s health to his own parents and family was enormously mortified. But it was Albus’s own wishes and at that time, Louis didn’t even know him that well. There were times where he didn’t want to keep his secret anymore and just told Uncle Harry and Aunt Ginny about it.

But then, Louis’s own personal moral foundations about listening to people and didn’t argue about what they felt were winning his self-debate. He tried to help Albus as best as he could while at the same time preventing Albus for hurting his own self even more. As the time passed, Louis began to notice how Albus’s distrust toward their family was stopping him for opening up. At the same time, he also began to understand why Albus felt that way.

He questioned everything around him inside his head; why his family treated Albus that way, why Albus treated their family that way, who was wrong, who was right, which side did he had to choose, what was the consequences of doing so, what should he do to stop it, what should he do to make the two side come together.

Just like his mother brought Vicky and Dom understood each other, Louis wanted everyone could understand one another.

Louis wanted everyone around him to be happy and healthy; physically and mentally.

“Louis” Professor Longbottom called him.

He looked up to Neville and smiled, “Yes” he said shortly, “I think I might be wanting to be a healer”,

“Or someone who work in other medical field” he said to the professor.

At this, Neville smiled back at Louis, “That’s great, Louis. Although this branch of career needs a lot of hard work and dedication, I am sure someone as brilliant and caring as you could absolutely achieve it”.

This time, Louis also smiled back at him genuinely.

“And then Hagrid’s beard was dipped into the cheese, it was so funny. You guys should see his face!” James laughed again.

A typical dinner for Louis these days; sitting with Fred and James while the older was telling the other two everything he’s done for the day with his ‘fake’ girlfriend, Samantha.

Many times, people completely misunderstood or misinterpreting his words into something he’ll never think about in the first place. James was joining Vicky and Dom on the list of names. It’s been six weeks since then and Louis’s sympathy for James was weirdly increasing. Seeing James so happy like this because of a girl would be unbelievable cause last year- or a couple months ago.

Louis looked up to James who still happily telling stories to him and Fred. And it seemed that James himself hadn’t realize how happy he was. From the corner of his eyes, Louis could see Mayers was sitting a couple of people away from James. He shifted his eyes and found Thomas in Ravenclaws table. The two girls were failing to get James’s heart after attempted for years. Yet-

He looked through Ravenclaws to Slytherin table and found Samantha’s long blond hair backing him.

Louis would have to give her credit. In just six weeks she was successfully making James fell for her without him even know about it.

_"He also answered ‘a true love’”_

Well, sometimes that thing was found in the most unexpected place and situation.

“-but then I told Sam that Hagrid was the one who raise the three head dog and he’s best friend with it. Hagrid said that he could show Sam the dog if she wants too. He stared at her hopefully for so long, she had no choice but to say yes. We’ll visit Fluffy next week, but-” James continued his story.

“James” Fred cut him,

“Yeah?”

“You haven’t touched your food at all” Fred said to him.

James looked down at his plate and smiled, “Too busy talking” he said while starting to cut his sausages.

Fred eyed Louis who was sitting in front of him and they held their gaze to each other for a while. Fred’s feeling about the whole thing was more complicated than his. But this fake dating stuff was about James and not Fred. If James was feeling happy, then it was good.

Louis just hoped that James soon realized he was starting to like Samantha for real.

He eyed the Slytherin table again and looked at Samantha. She was surrounded by people who seemingly her age, probably her classmates. He found a rather somber Snyde was playing with her food and Vorhess was beside her. Accrington and another blond girl whose name Louis didn’t know chatting while eating. Malfoy was sitting beside him looking anxious, keeping his gaze toward the Great Hall’s door. He cocked his head forward and said something to the blond-haired girl.

He looked extremely anxious.

“Lou?” James’s voice startled him.

“What?”

James pursed his lips, “So, you aren’t listening to me”.

“I am sorry, James. My head wondered around for some times” he answered, truly sorry he didn’t listen to James.

“I asked you how was the career talk with Neville went on?”

Louis sighed, “It- kind of went well”, he replied, “We were brainstorming into any possible careers for me”.

“I am sure that’s a lot of careers” Fred joined the conversation.

“At first I was kind of confused. I mean, I just turned sixteen. How if one day I decided to pivot into something completely different than what we decided the best for me- as for now, like Vicky and Dom?”.

“To be honest I never think about the career talk that much” James said to him.

“How was it for you last year?” Louis asked,

“Well, at first it was kind of lame. He asked me weather I have a motivation from the people around me-”

“Same for me” Louis said,

“- and then, we discussed my academic marks and asked me what I truly wanted from this life bla bla bla”.

“Then what did he suggested to you?”

James sighed, “He said that I’ll be a great Auror just like my father” he said sarcastically, “Touché” he rolled his eyes.

“Wait, you don’t want to be an Auror?” Fred asked,

“Not at all” James said surely.

“That’s kind of surprising coming from you” Fred replied, looked genuinely surprised.

“Do I?”

“Totally”

“It’s true I want a life of adventure and great magic stuff” James said, “But being an Auror isn’t the only way”,

“What about you, Lou?” James asked him.

“He said that I’ll be a good doctor” he answered shortly.

James and Fred looked at each other before turned their head back to Louis,

“Well, I think that kind of makes sense” James commented.

“Yeah, I also think he’s right” Fred said.

Louis smiled to them, “Really?” he asked, “You two really think so?”.

“Totally. You have the brain and the compassion” James said, “What do you think about it yourself?” he asked.

“I think-” Louis stopped for a second, “I think I am kind of want to be one”.

“That’s great, Lou” Fred said to him.

Louis was delighted by their encouragement and spent the rest of the dinner time discussing school subjects, O.W.L, and the NEWT classes.

Thirty minutes late. Albus was thirty minutes late already.

It was eight thirty-two and Louis was standing alone in a lonely corridor they usually met. Still, no sign of his little cousin. It was almost the nine o’clock curfew and Louis had to gather for Prefect Patrol Briefing. What took Albus so long?

Five minutes become ten minutes and ten become fifteen and then twenty.

This was the first time he ever late. Sometimes, Albus was even earlier than Louis and waiting for him. Other times, Louis was the one who waited. But, even so Albus was never late- let alone FIFTY MINUTES late. And to think that it was the time for him to gather with the Prefects.

What should he do?

It would be a handy if he could call Kreacher, but Albus had banned Kreacher to answer his call since their fight broke a couple weeks ago.

Damn.

Should he just leave the- No no no no. If the left the pills there, it would be very risky. Not to mention very irresponsible of him. But if Albus didn’t drink them, there was a high chance he’ll have a difficulty of breathing during his sleep tonight. 

Why he hadn’t come?

At the end, Louis decided to leave for Prefect Patrol Briefing while thinking the way to contact Albus.

All of the prefects and head boys and girls were already there, including James. Hufflepuff’s Head Girl Mikaela Kidman was announcing everyone’s route for the night. He was supposed to go scouting the area near Ravenclaw Tower for that night with his partner, a sixth-year Hufflepuff Tommy Macmillan.

 _“This wouldn’t do”_ Louis thought.

“All right everyone, that was for the night. As usual, comeback here again at midnight” Kidman said.

They scattered to team up with their partner. Louis walked toward Macmillan who was taking to Skyver.

“Hey Weasley” greeted Macmillan.

“Hey” he quickly turned to Skyver, “Skyver, tonight you team up with Sharron isn’t it?” he asked.

“And my route would be the dungeon too” he said, “Oh how lucky I am” he threw a sarcastic remark.

“Do you want to switch with me?” Louis offered.

Getting to dungeon itself was the only way he could contact Albus. He had to go there.

Skyver’s face lit up, “Gladly, Weasley!”

“Great!”

“Why the hell do you want to switch?” Macmillan asked.

“Nothing personal against you Macmillan” he answered, “I’ve patrolled the Ravenclaw’s Tower ten times this month. Three times more and maybe I’ll get lost to it when I supposed to go to my own dorm” he tried to joke.

The two guys smirked, “Nice” Macmillan said. 

“Right, Sharron is in the lavatory. You have to wait for a while” Skyver said.

“Good luck, Weasley” Macmillan said to him.

The two prefects began to go from the area and that left Louis completely alone in the corridor as the other prefects were also already began their patrol. About three minutes after that, Sharron was walking toward him.

“Weasley?” she asked,

“Hai Sharron” Louis greeted her.

“Why are you still here?” she confused, “And where is Skyver? Does he already go?” she asked.

“Yes, to Ravenclaw Tower with Macmillan” he answered one of her questions,

“And I am here waiting for you” he answered the other.

“What?”

“I- kind of switch with Skyver” he said.

“Why?” she asked lazily.

“Whatever it is, it’s nothing personal against you” he answered.

“Whatever, I don’t even care if it’s something personal against me” she answered.

They began their patrol from the underground corridors to the potion classroom, to another corridors, broomstick cupboards, abandoned classrooms and on. Throughout the patrol, Louis’s mind was working hard on how to ask Sharron for helping him fetch Albus. Or to be more precise, checking if Albus was _in_ his dorm- at least. He had a bad feeling about it and the closer they got into the Slytherin’s Dungeon, the faster his heart beats.

He just knew something was not right.

About thirty minutes more walking and they finally got into the dungeon corridor. The Wall was ahead of them and Louis knew it was his only chance.

“Sharron” he called her.

“What?” she replied shortly.

“I- can I ask you a favor?”

“You? Me?” she pointed him and her, “Did your head hit something?” she asked Louis.

“No, I am serious Sharron. I need your help, and frankly you are the only one who could help me” he said.

“If it some kind of a joke, I would know about it” she warned Louis.

“No, it’s super serious. I swear” he held a V sign with his fingers.

Sharron raised on of her eyebrows, “Let’s hear about it then” she said.

“Great!” he exclaimed, “I- I need you to check on my cousin, Albus. Ma- make sure he is inside his dorm” he pointed the dungeon’s wall.

“What makes you think he isn’t inside?” she asked, “Because I saw Malfoy went down after dinner. And I am pretty sure if Malfoy is inside, Potter would be too”.

“Well, I didn’t see him at the dinner”

“Maybe he was in the lavatory when you tried to find him”

“No, I was trying to find him the _whole time_ during dinner. He wasn’t there”

Sharron frowned her forehead, “So, you were staring at the Slytherin table _the whole time_ during dinner, trying to find Potter”.

“Yes, I did” he replied her whole-heartedly.

“And why the hell was that?”she asked, “I mean, last time I checked Potter wasn’t a baby”.

“I-” he hesitated, “I can’t tell you the reason. It’s family matter” he answered.

Sharron was clearly judging him. She looked at him as if there was something weird about his answer.

“Whatever” she finally replied, “But if it turns out that Potter is inside, you owe me one Weasley”.

“I’ll make sure to put it on my tab” Louis answered.

Sharron was walking to the wall and muttered something in a very low voice, making sure Louis didn’t hear the password to the Slytherin common room. The big wall was parting into two and it was the first time Louis ever took a peak at other house’s common room.

He never knew that Slytherin common room was so elegant and fancy. Gryffindor common room made him feel at home, where everything was warm and cozy. Now he wonder how were Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff common rooms looked like. He thought that every house was uniquely different.

“You wait here” Sharron said before she step into the room.

The wall immediately closed right after that.

Louis waited for quite sometimes, nervous about the whole situation. He just hoped that his feeling wasn’t came out true.

No, it had to be not true

Albus was inside, he was alright

He was alright

He was alright

Louis kept chanting the words inside his head.

But then, Sharron came out. She wasn’t alone, but the person she bought wasn’t the one he hoped for.

It was Scorpius.

“How?” Louis shortly asked.

“Okay Weasley, you’ve got some feeling right there. I give you that” Sharron said.

“Albus is not here” Scorpius said. He was clearly anxious, “I haven’t seen him since the afternoon. And he didn’t showed up at dinner”.

“I was with him this afternoon” Louis replied.

“Have any idea where he went after that?” Sharron asked, tried to be calm.

“No!” both Louis and Scorpius said at the same time.

“Okay, let’s calm down first. We’ll gathered the prefects to look after him” Sharron said.

“I want to come with you” Scorpius immediately said.

“No Malfoy, you stay here” Sharron refused.

“No!” Scorpius yelled, “I- I should be with him today, but I didn’t. And I-” he stammered, “I- I just...”

“Malfoy, it’s okay. It’s not your fault or anything” Sharron assured him.

Louis began to feel horrible as he looked at Scorpius. The boy clearly felt really anxious at dinner and the feeling might be escalated into whole level now.

“She is right. It’s okay Scorpius” Louis said to him, “You need to be calm”.

“But I can’t. He said that he wanted to get some air and refused to let anyone accompanied him. But I should just said that I wanted to be- and I-”

Scorpius was panicking when the wall was opened once more. Samantha Burke, in a thick purple sleep robe came out, looking so distressed.

“Samantha?” Sharron greeted her.

“Nayla, thank god!” she said, “I- there’s a problem!” she almost screamed.

“What is it?”

Samantha looked at Sharron and then Scorpius and Louis. She gulped and rubbed her hands together,

“Hahhh” she took a breath and out, “I- Irene hasn’t come back yet” she said,

“I didn’t see her at dinner either” she clearly wanted to cry.

The other three people looked at each other and now was the time to feel real panicked. One Head Girl didn’t sure how she felt about the situation. One cousin felt a pang of anxiety. Two close friends clearly seemed distressed. And two people were clearly missing.

\--

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally!  
> Guess who it would be for next chapter? ^.^


	14. Ginny: A Tickling Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Harry, the time is tickling” Ginny whispered.
> 
> “I know…”
> 
> “For all we know, our son might be suffocating right now. Out of breath-” Ginny couldn’t hold it any longer.
> 
> In front of other people in the whole world, she could fight back any weakness and tears. But, with Harry it was different.

**Ginny**

\--

Ginny knew she would get bad news that day. She just knew it. It was a mother’s instinct.

She spent the day at her childhood house, in the warm presence of her own mother. There was no reason for her to stay at her huge estate as her husband was off to work on that weekend. But even being surrounded by the warmth of her home, she couldn’t push the feeling away. She looked at the sunset from the window and felt her heart fell apart.

Something was wrong.

Something was very very wrong.

“Ginny, come on. The dinner is ready” said her mother from the other room.

She didn’t budge from the window and continued to stare at the sunset. Her heart was beating fast and she wanted to cry just by looking at the red sky.

“Ginny, Dear!” Her mother called her again.

“Coming mom…” she said quietly.

Ginny took one last glance toward the sun and then walked toward the dining room. Her mother and father were already sitting and she took her seat in front of her mother. The dinner would taste heavenly in different circumstances, but not for now. Ginny wasn’t even interested in finishing her meal, all of the meals were tasteless in her mouth. She felt her mother’s and father’s eyes on her and looked up from her plate.

True to her words, they quietly looked at her with a very concerned expression.

“Will you tell us what happen?” her mother asked tenderly,

“Do you and Harry get into a fight?” her father asked right after her mother.

Ginny shook her head, “No, we are fine Dad”.

“Then why are you looking so sad?”.

“I feel-” she looked at her mother and at her father again, “I feel something bad is about to happen”,

“I don’t know to whom, but it’s among _them_ ”.

Her mother took Ginny’s right hand, “They would be alright, Sweety. Don’t you worry about that”.

“Maybe it’s due to the things that happen lately? The murder case and all that?” her father wondered.

“Yeah, Harry seems restless these days. Maybe it affects you without you realize it” her mother said, “Sometimes, it happens in marriage. His feeling becomes yours and yours become his”.

Ginny sighed, “No, Mom. It’s not about Harry. I am sure whatever obstacle happens to him, he would find a way to fight it. We’ve had that conversation a long time ago. ‘Just believe in me. I’ll always find my way to come back to you’ was his words that I hold dear in my heart”,

“No, it isn't about him. I feel it would be one of our children”,

“I have this feeling that something is about to happen to one of them” she said.

“Oh Ginny, Dear…” her mother caressed her hand, “They’ll be fine. They are behind the safe wall of Hogwarts”.

Ginny shook her head slowly, “A long time ago, I was within Hogwarts too. Yet, I still…” she didn’t finish her sentence.

Both of her parents looked at her with a concerned expression, not knowing what to say anymore to comfort their daughter.

Her mother urged her to sleep in the house for the night, knowing that Harry would likely not going home again. That husband of hers had been getting a lot of pressure these days and the only things she could do to ease a bit of his burden were through kisses, embraces, and loves. Just like her mother, of course she also noticed how stressed and restless was Harry these days- or even, years. The enormous responsibilities that fell upon his shoulder were slowly eating him away.

Her worry as a wife was thrown out of the window as her motherly instinct came true in the form of her own husband’s Patronus. The silvery stag came to her room at about two in the morning, lighting the darkroom as she was lying down on her bed, wide awake as the sleep never came to her.

_‘Love, come to Hogwarts in instant. Professor McGonagall just called me; Albus is missing’._

As the Patronus disappeared, she felt that her world was ready to crumble down once again. 

**_TIK TOK TIK TOK: 10 Hours after declared missing, 7 a.m Monday._ **

The waiting was agony.

The taste was an agony.

There was no amount of sugar that could make her tea taste sweet. No amount of sugar coat could make the fact change that her Dear Albus slipped through her fingers once more.

A timid looking house-elf was walking to her table and offered her some more tea, “Would you like to-”

“No”

“No, thank you”.

They answered him simultaneously. The house-elf’s ears were going down and he walked away from the table in which she sat, with another woman- another mother.

At least she hadn’t wait alone.

After hearing Scorpius, Louis, The Slytherin Head Girl, and a girl named Samantha Burke’s explanation in the headmaster's office some hours ago, Harry quickly assembled a search team. They included some of his subordinates and teachers, following his lead. Professor Flitwick reported that some of the Ravenclaw students saw explosions through their windows that afternoon. And then the Burke girl said that they used to have a picnic in a meadow near the woods. The party decided to begin their search from there.

Ginny desperately wanted to come too, but Harry shook his head before she even finished her sentence. James insisted to come and Harry just yelled at him. Between the stress of work and the stress of having his second child missing again, she knew that her husband wasn’t in the mood to have a debate.

And, she wasn’t the only one who got rejected.

She looked at the woman who was sitting across her, with a pair of dull blank eyes just like hers. Her lovely face couldn’t hide the ache and sadness she felt. And just like her, she still wearing her sleep robe. Her husband joined the search party, who began their operation two hours ago right after the sun rose in the east. And in those two hours, both women were stuck waiting for any news regarding their missing child.

Ginny took her to the school kitchen for a cup of tea. But after the first sip, they hadn’t risen their cup again since then.

It seemed that she felt Ginny was staring at her as she rose her head to meet her eyes. 

“It’s really hard” she said.

“Of course, it is” Ginny replied, “It’s not the first time this happens to me. But the thing is, one couldn’t get used to it even after hundreds of times”.

“No mother could get used to losing her child” Emmeline agreed.

Ginny nodded her head, “No mother could get used to being parted from her child”.

There was a long silence before Emmeline spoke again, “When my husband said that we would likely move here, I knew in an instant that my daughter would hate it”,

“She hates rain and cold, she isn't a fan of the foods, and she doesn't like country life. Everything in our life here is the embodiment of all the things she hates”,

“In my and my daughter’s old school, when you are the top of your class or reach a certain academic milestone, your robe turns into gold. I still remembered very clearly when she came home that day wore the shining golden robe, her big smile- God!”,

“It was one of the happiest days in my life to see her big happy smile that day. She ran to me and hugged me very tightly, enchanting ‘I did it, Mama! I did it!’”.

Without even seeing her, Ginny knew that tears were running down from Emmeline’s eyes. Her head was turned away from Ginny, looking at the small fire that’s dancing in the fireplace.

“Then, the day came. Of course, she said that she wouldn’t come. She argued that she could stay with her grandparents until she graduated and then come here after that”.

“But I was selfish. I don’t want to live without both of my children by my side. I don’t want to be parted from the two of them. So, I dragged her here, throwing away everything she ever fights for. And when she was sorted into Slytherin- just like my wretched ancestors, I wanted to stab myself. What did I do? I felt like I pushed her into a flaming hell”,

“I just wished that she would make friends. I pray every night, ‘Please, let her enjoy her school life, let her meet the people that love her, people that would protect her”’,

“But what did I know? Even a thousand years old castle and Gods couldn’t protect her”, Emmeline ended her story.

Ginny couldn’t relate to her tale, but she knew the feeling must be truly painful. Just like hers.

“My first year of living in this castle wasn’t pretty either” Ginny started her story, “I was possessed by Voldemort himself”.

Emmeline turned her head toward Ginny with round shocking eyes and slightly open mouth.

“He led me to open a secret chamber, built by Salazar Slytherin to house a beast that could kill someone just by looking into its eyes. He made me opened it and set the beast free while slowly absorbed my soul to make his own soul stronger”.

“I killed chickens, flooded a bathroom, petrified students, a ghost, and a cat. The school was almost being closed and I almost died. In the end, he led me to get into the chamber itself, lying cold on the floor and slowly dying”.

“Wh-what happened-” Emmeline didn’t finish her question.

“My husband came to save the day and me, slew the beast and got me out of the chamber” Ginny replied,

“Well, back then he was my brother’s best friend” she added.

Emmeline turned her head away from Ginny and looking back to the fire again, “Some people- were truly born for greatness” she commented.

Ginny looking at her cold tea, “For others, maybe” she sighed, “But not so much for our own Albus”,

“We both knew from a long time ago that Albus would be different from the other children in our family. So, I didn’t quite understand his disappointment when Albus wasn’t sorted into Gryffindor like his brother and cousins”,

“The awkward rift between my husband and my son was lasting for years. And I tried my best-”,

“I _truly_ tried my best to bring them together. But as time passed, I began to feel that Albus was slowly slipping from my hold. There was a time when my husband even said that he wished Albus wasn’t our son”,

“There wasn’t a time in which I couldn’t possibly be angrier to my husband than that very moment. How could he say that? How could he _possibly_ say that to our own Albus? And from then on, everything became worse. Albus began to hate himself, always feel insufficient, always doubt his own existence. He began to compare himself with his own father. He wanted to be a great wizard, the one who able to do the same heroic stunts like what his father ever done”,

“And every one of those little causes led all of us into a disaster. After everything ended and we thought that we had fixed everything, time once again proved us wrong. Albus blamed himself for the thing he caused and began to distance from everyone, _including_ me!”,

“Me! He used to write two or three times a week to me. It didn’t matter that he and my husband had a crash with each other, me and Albus have always been so close. But this year, I barely received ten letters for the whole year. I miss him!”,

“I miss my Albus” Ginny whispered.

Neither of them tried to comfort one another nor attempted to talk further. They understood each other’s pain for the current situation both of them were in. Their anxiety was at a point where no one could ever imagine. Ginny herself felt she wanted to puke, thinking about the danger and fight Albus probably faced at the moment.

CRACK!

A female house-elf wore a green kimono appeared beside their table.

“My Lady” she greeted with a slight head bow.

“Kiki, what are you doing here?” Emmeline asked.

The house-elf looked straight with a calm expression and both hands clasped in front of her stomach, “Young Master is awake and currently crying looking for you” she reported,

“Hoshi tries his best to calm him down, but even when I apparated here he is still crying”.

Emmeline sighed, “Of course he will”.

“Thank you, Kiki. You can-”

CRACK!

The house-elf was suddenly disapparating from their sight. Emmeline looked confused and so was Ginny. Did other family members call her?

Emmeline didn’t say anything for some seconds before spoke once again, “Kiki” she called the house-elf.

CRACK!

The house-elf appeared in front of them.

Upon seeing her state both of the women were very shocked. Ginny and Emmeline stood from their stool in an instant.

She was soaked from head to toe.

“KIKI!” Emmeline exclaimed.

“Huuk Huuuk!” The house-elf crunched and started to puke the water inside her mouth.

Emmeline crouched down too and got her wand to dry her up. “Kiki, what happened?” she asked the house-elf.

“Miss Irene called me” she replied,

Emmeline gasped, “So- why are you? Whe- where is she?”,

“I was underwater, My Lady. But she wasn’t anywhere around” she answered.

Ginny’s eyes went wide, while Emmeline looked like she wanted to cry.

 _‘Is she dying? Is she sinking? What about my son?’_ Ginny thought.

“How about my son? Did you see a boy around?” Ginny asked the house-elf.

“No, I wasn’t Miss. It was just water and plants and fishes”.

“You can apparate back there, can't you?”

“Yes, I can”

“Let’s tell the people!” Ginny said to Emmeline.

“Kiki, follow me” Emmeline said.

The two women and the house-elf were running out of the kitchen, heading to the checkpoint of the search party. The time was right when the students began to go to their first class and Ginny could see some familiar faces like Fred and Hugo when she crossed the Great Hall corridor. She didn’t have time for any of the pleasantries and continued to run.

Her son might be suffocating at the very moment! Nothing else mattered to her.

“ANATA!” Emmeline screamed upon seeing her husband.

He was surrounded by some other people, Harry included. Ginny also noticed some familiar faces of her husband’s co-workers as well as the teachers.

“What’s going on?” Emmeline’s husband, Ryota instantly asked her when she already stood in front of him.

“Irene…. Kiki… haaah, she called her” she said while panting hard.

“Irene… called Kiki?”

“Yes! But she wasn’t anywhere. Kiki was underwater which means… haaaah our daughter… She might be…” Emmeline tried her best to explain the situation.

“Kiki?” Ryota asked the house-elf.

“Miss Irene called me, Sir. But I was apparated underwater, right at the bottom of it. And Miss Irene wasn’t anywhere around” she replied.

Harry silently walked and stood beside Ginny, listened to the explanation as well.

“Our dear son…” she whispered to Harry.

“We’ve suspected it,” he said quietly, “There might be a situation where they had to jump into the water”.

Emmeline touched her forehead, panting and about to cry, “My daughter… My Irene can’t- she can’t swim…”.

**_TIK TOK TIK TOK: 22 Hours after declared missing, 7 p.m Monday._ **

The sun was already setting in the west and Ginny was ready to pull her hair out, feeling relentless of the search outcome. She was pacing in her bedroom when she heard someone walking in the corridor. She opened the bedroom door and there, stood her husband.

“How?!” She asked him.

Harry sighed and got into the room and immediately sitting on the bedroom couch. Just by the look on his face, Ginny knew that Harry was exhausted and angry. He looked at her with a mixed expression and slowly shook his head.

“We can’t continue the diving tonight. There wasn’t any moonlight and once we are diving close to the bottom, we can’t see a thing. I cast _Lumos_ but then the merpeople suddenly came and drove us back to the surface”.

“And so?”

“I’ll try to negotiate with them tomorrow morning. It’s impossible to keep searching with the current number of the team. Gillyweed and spells work just fine but with the size of Black Lake, we need more people and resources. The merpeople would be perfect for the job”.

“Harry, the time is tickling” Ginny whispered.

“I know…”

“For all we know, our son might be suffocating right now. Out of breath-” Ginny couldn’t hold it any longer.

In front of other people in the whole world, she could fight back any weakness and tears. But, with Harry it was different.

“Our son-” the tears started to pour out of her eyes, blurring her vision.

Harry got up off the couch and hugged her tightly. Ginny buried her face in his chest, smelled the sweat, dirt, and fishy odor from his jacket. He caressed her back, put his head on her shoulder, and whispered comforting words in her ear.

There were so many times when Ginny felt strong and optimistic. But there were so many times when she felt weak and helpless either. For now, it was the latter.

**_TIK TOK TIK TOK: 40 Hours after declared missing, 3 p.m Tuesday._ **

Ginny was standing on the side of the lake with some other people. The whole school might know about the situation by now, as some of the curious students were also there as well; her own children James and Lily included. Some of her nephews and nieces were there too. She could see students in the green and silver ties around Scorpius, looking so troubled and sad. From time to time, they would come and go, probably to attend some classes. But they would come back and sit at the same spot near the lake. Ginny looked at them and wondered,

_Is Albus close with them?_

_Is Albus making friends with them?_

_Are they good to him?_

Ginny wished she knew the answer. Of course, she could just walk to them and asked. But the truth was, she wanted to hear it from Albus himself. She wanted to read his letters or hear it from his own mouth about his friends. She wanted to sit with him, hearing his stories about how hard he studied, laughed with him at the stories of silly mistakes he made during potion, or how lame Care of Magical Creature class was. 

She just wanted her son back to her side.

“Mom...” Lily called her.

She looked down at her daughter who looked so sad herself. Upon seeing her, Lily instantly wrapped her little arms around her and they stay at each other’s arms ever since. The daughter of hers- she was thankful Lily was there with her.

“Don’t you have class?” Ginny asked her.

She shook her head and leaning her head into Ginny’s body.

Looking around, her nephew Louis was there as well leaning his back over a tree, looking straight at the lake.

Seeing him, a question that had been bugging Ginny’s mind surfaced once more. Louis was the first person to raise awareness. He said that he would meet Albus that night. But why? Why did Louis and Albus suppose to meet that night? Why did Louis sound so sure that he would meet Albus that night?

As far as Ginny knew, Albus and Louis weren’t even close to each other.

Actually, Albus wasn’t close to any of his cousins at all. Why so suddenly, Albus and Louis made friends?

Why?

Her question had to wait as she saw someone appeared on the water surface. About ten people were swimming back into the land, including her husband. Emmeline’s husband Ryota was among them as well. He headed to the side where Emmeline was standing near her toddler son and a male house-elf.

Ginny helped Harry to get up onto the land and immediately cast the _Scourgify_ charm to dry him up.

“Well?” she asked.

“One of the merpeople found something” Harry replied.

“What is-”

Before she finished her words, Emmeline’s scream was echoing through the air.

“HAAAAAAAA!”

She instantly turned her head in Emmeline’s direction. The woman was crunching down on the ground, hugging something tightly into her chest. Her cried was instant and so painful to hear.

“It’s the girl’s wand” Harry whispered.

Ginny gasped at Harry’s words, “And Albus?” she asked.

Harry shook his head.

_Nil_

Before she even realized, Ginny walked into Emmeline and crouched down at her lever. She instantly wrapped her arms around the crying woman in front of her. There wasn’t any sign about her son, but the feeling of agony from Emmeline; she could feel it as well. The discovery basically confirmed that the girl was indeed sunk into the water.

Emmeline continued to cry, hugging her daughter’s wand close into her heart.

**_TIK TOK TIK TOK: 57 Hours after declared missing, 8 a.m Wednesday._ **

The breakfast felt like ashes that day and Ginny couldn’t help herself to even put something in her mouth. But, how could she? It’s been more than two days since her son was missing. Yesterday’s discovery basically confirmed that Irene was indeed sinking deep into the water and losing her wand. Emmeline’s cry still echoing in her ear, reminding her of the pain of losing a child.

Yet, nothing about Albus.

They still hadn’t sure whether Albus was sinking too along with Irene or no. They still couldn’t guess what happened to him. No one knew where he was, no one could predict his current condition.

“Ginny Dear…” her mother whispering her name, “You need to eat” she said quietly.

Ginny closed her eyes, “How could I, Mom?” she replied, “What if he is wounded? What if he is starving? What if he couldn’t even breathe?”,

“My son…”.

“Oh, Ginny” her mother caressed her back, “What is the plan for today, Harry?” she asked her son-in-law, who was in the same state as her daughter, more or less.

Harry sighed, “I-” he took a breath and released it slowly, “I plan to talk to the merpeople again. More of my subordinates would come as well, searching around the area. They would focus to hunt down the man who probably attacked Albus and Irene”.

“That sounds like a plan” her mother agreed.

“Do you think it links to the serial murder case?” she asked him again.

“The probability is high” he answered shortly, “He was last seen in Hogsmeade”.

They were silent after that. No one was in the mood to talk any further.

**_TIK TOK TIK TOK: 68 Hours after declared missing, 5 p.m Wednesday._ **

“How was it?” Ginny asked Harry, not wasting time on any pleasantries.

Harry tapped the dining table’s surface, hesitant to answer the question. “The merpeople said something unusual,” he said.

“What is it?”

“Magic”, Harry took a deep breath before explaining, “They said they felt a sudden soar of magic at the afternoon of that day”.

“And what is that mean?”

“Possibilities. Either it _did_ something good or something bad to the kids” Harry answered, “If- If Irene was indeed got into the lake, it might be the reason why we couldn’t find her body. And it could be the reason Albus wasn’t anywhere either”.

Ginny’s mouth suddenly felt dry upon heard the words, “It- it… It could be good, right?”,

“Like- like maybe it sent Albus and Irene somewhere- somewhere safe, right?!”.

Her husband was quiet for a long time, “The probability is… slight”.

“Don’t say that Harry!” Ginny argued, “Our son is much stronger than everyone gives him credit for!”,

“I know that for sure!”.

No. Ginny did not accept any possibility which says that her son wouldn’t back to her. No, she would never! Her son would come back, he would come home to her once more. No one could convince her otherwise.

_He would come back_

_He would come back_

She kept repeating the words inside her head.

“I know” Harry whispered, “I know he is strong, in his own way”.

He sighed, rubbing his hands together, and looked at Ginny’s eyes, “Be honest with me. Do you think I am a bad father to him?”.

Ginny closed her eyes; the feeling wasn’t in the mood for such a conversation. She wanted to discuss what would their next plan of finding Albus instead of _this_. She knew that Harry’s spirit was beginning to decline and his optimism was starting to fade. No, they couldn’t do that! They need to be strong and unyielding in finding their son, not moping around and acted as their son would never come back. Like it was a moment to look back into someone’s life while their soul flying away from the mortal world.

No!

Ginny refused to believe any of that!

Her son would come back to her. 

“You weren’t a bad father” Ginny replied, “You were a _horrible_ father to him. After everything that happened last year, I thought that you would make more effort to get closer to him”,

“But I was wrong. You still treat him like a stranger” Ginny answered, being more honest than she thought she would.

Ginny hated to guilt trip Harry when it came to Albus. But sometimes, that husband of hers needed a reminder of what truly happened around him. It was a blatant fact that Harry seldom spent time with Albus and it wasn’t just for the last four years. It was also a fact that after the time travel things happened, Neither Harry nor Albus tried to get closer to each other- the one thing that Ginny desperately wanted to happen.

“But it’s not too late to start. After this thing ends, you could try your best to fix it” she said,

“Deep within his heart, I know that Albus loves you very much. And you love him too”.

“I am. I love him very much” Harry whispered.

**_TIK TOK TIK TOK: 85 Hours after declared missing, 10 a.m Thursday._ **

It was the fourth day. The fourth freaking days since her son was missing and Ginny felt she wanted to explode. She didn’t even sure to whom she was angry. Was it her husband? The search teams? The school teachers? The merpeople? The whole world? Gods?

She didn’t know.

What she knew was that her son hasn’t been found.

And she was angry because of that.

The plan was set and the search team would dive again. They would try to find any remnants of the magic which the merpeople talked about at the bottom of the Black Lake. Emmeline was there as well, standing close beside her. Her eyes were red and the bag under her eyes couldn’t be more apparent. Ginny was sure Emmeline hadn’t slept and eaten enough for the last four days.

Just like her.

_Please, please, please… this time… please…._

“Please… Let him come back to me” she whispered.

Ginny felt a palm sneaked into hers and holding it tightly. Without looking, she knew that it was Emmeline.

“He will” Emmeline whispered “He will come back to you”.

“Just like my Irene will come back to me,” she said quietly.

Hours passed and some people from the search team were resurfacing from the water, taking a break. They were replaced by other people who started to dive into the water. Harry, however, never got back and taking a break.

Aside from worrying about her son, now she also worried about her husband.

It killed Ginny because she didn’t sure what precisely happened beneath the water.

Why the hell she wasn’t allowed to participate?!

It wasn’t fair!

She was Albus’s mother!

She tapped her foot impatiently, feeling relentless about the uncertainty of the situation.

When the vanilla twilight was beginning to form, the whole search team members resurfaced from underwater.

“We found it!” Harry exclaimed to Ginny, “The magic barrier”.

“And?” Ginny asked impatiently to him.

“We tried to destroy it. But it was too difficult. The magic is really powerful” he said,

Suddenly, he hugged Ginny very tightly, “But I will destroy it, Love. I swear to you! I am confident about it now. They might be inside it. They might be alive!”,

“I promise, our son will come back to us” he said into her ears.

“Albus will come back, I swear” he kept repeating his words to her.

Ginny hugged him back, feeling grateful that her husband had found his optimism and spirit back into him. She was grateful that he was determined to get Albus back to them.

“I know” she whispered, “I know he will come back to us”,

“I am sure he will”.

\--

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have you guys read the news of Johny Depp being kick out from Fantastic Beast?  
> I love that man's works. He is an amazing actor.  
> Such a loss to the franchise...


	15. Albus: Don't Cry, Irene

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You dragged me from the middle of the lake, made a bed and blanket, and nursing me until I wake up. And you did all those things alone even though you scared so very much of this place. For me, that’s not cowardly- that’s bravery” he said to her,
> 
> “And now that I already wake up, you don’t have to do everything alone anymore”.
> 
> Irene rose her head up and looked straight into Albus’s eyes. He hoped she found that sincerity and determination that he put on those words.

**Albus**

\--

He vividly remembered from the books he had read that some people described the death as something so peaceful, something that would take all of your worldly pain away. Some glorified the meaning behind it; an eternal slumber for the tired souls. The other people saw it as the gate to heaven, for they were sure their good deeds in this mortal world would be repaid. The religious ones saw it as another step of life, a pit stop to wait until the day of judgment would finally arrive.

But he didn’t feel any of them.

It was so painful.

It burnt his skin and took all of his breath away.

He couldn’t move any of his limbs, everything stayed still even if he wanted to do otherwise. It forced him to feel every pinch of pain he felt within his body.

It wasn’t peaceful, it was painful.

Tic

Tic

Tic

He felt something wet against his cheeks. It didn’t come forcefully like the rain; it didn’t feel painful at all. Instead, it felt like those little drops of water after he turned off the faucet. It tickled his skin, made him feel his other sense more and more.

“Albus…” he heard his name being called.

He heard sobs and his name being called again.

Ah, so that was the drops of tears fell on his cheeks.

“Please, Albus. Wake up… please” he heard the plea again.

 _‘Please, don’t. Don’t cry over me’_ he thought to himself.

“Albus” the soft yet hoarse voice was heard again.

_A girl?_

“Please, wake up. Don’t le-ave me al-one” she struggled to say the words through her sobs.

Who would cry over him? So sadly, cry over him?

So very slowly, while the voice and words of the plea were gradually decreased, the dim light started to come to him. His lips were trembling over the new sense of pain that came to him. More and more sense woke up and he could feel how far more painful the feeling was.

His head felt like it was being hit to the wall over and over again.

His lungs burnt; his breath ragged.

His muscles felt like they were twisted and pull out of his body.

His eyes began to adjust their surroundings and slowly, he could open his eyes.

The first thing he saw was a dark roof. And as time passed, he could see that it wasn’t just a dark roof. It was a roof full of stalactites. He could see a blue light coming from the right side of the roof and more darkness on the left side of it. As his vision sense coming back, so was his other senses.

He could feel the soft fabric beneath him.

He could feel a little wight of arm rested on his chest.

He could feel a soft breath tickling his right shoulder. 

With the very much painful body, the only thing he could do for a while was watching the stalactite roof. Little drops of water coming down from their pointy ends. Then, he heard the sound of water drops fell into another water, created an ambient sound and echo through the air.

Where was he? He thought to himself.

The little arm on his chest and the tickling breath became his next attention. He began to realize that he wasn’t alone in this strange and foreign place. The warmth of the body next to him slowly slipping into his sense and skin, creating a tickling yet comfortable feeling of familiarity. With great difficulty due to all the pains he felt in his body, Albus slowly turned his head to the right side. 

He met a pair of tightly closed eyes. Half the face was covered by the thick long black hair, but it still couldn’t hide the dried trail of tears from her eyes. Albus looked at the nose, the lips, the chin, and slowly let his memories resurfaced into his mind.

_Irene…_

The person whose face he was watching, the person who was with him was his friend, Irene.

_We were chased. Then we jumped. Then we were drowned._

What happened after they were drowned? Albus’s memories couldn’t recall it. Everything was blackened out and dark and painful to him. Where were they? What happened to both of them?

Maybe Irene could answer.

But seeing her face and recalled his vague memories, he was sure she had cried for hours.

It was her who cried over him.

It was her who called his name.

It was her whose voice so desperately cried his name.

How many hours did he fell unconscious? How many hours had gone since after that? Seeing her dried tears once more, he felt guilty all of a sudden. She must be so scared, being alone in this so unfamiliar place, had to take care of an unconscious friend.

Albus wanted to wake her up, asked so many questions that need to be asked. But he held himself back, wanted to let the poor girl rest from the reality much longer.

“Sleep tight” he whispered in his unheard voice.

 _“Albus…”_ a voice called him.

_That voice_

_“Albus, you are here!”_ said the angelic voice again.

“Who are you?” he whispered, couldn’t summon his own voice any louder.

 _“It’s me!”_ the voice exclaimed _._

Her voice echoed through the air and wall around him. Albus had an idea of whom she was, but he refused to believe any of his thought. He didn’t want to believe that the mysterious figure who always come within his dream was now in the same place as him, in the _real_ world. There were too many things inside his dream that he didn’t want to be real, and she was one of them.

And before he could say anything again, his consciousness began to slip away once more.

“Please… please… this time, please… wake up Albus” he heard a voice of plea.

“I really need you right now, please”.

Albus tried his hardest to open his eyes, woke up from the sleep that eat him up some time ago. And when he did, the first thing that he saw was Irene’s closed eyes once again. She held his right fist into both of her palms and brought them to her face. The words were enchanted over and over again, praying over his fist. He took the time to watch her in silence, looking at her frowning face and listening to her endless muttering.

“Ir- ne…” he tried to say her name, which only a fragment of it came out.

The girl suddenly opened her eyes and gasped. Black met green; her eyes widened upon seeing his opened eyes. “ALBUS!” she exclaimed.

Irene instantly buried her head on his chest and cried in relief, “Kami-Sama, thank you!”,

“Albus…” she continued to cry on his chest. From Albus’s eyes, he could only saw her head and her thick black hair sprawling on his chest. She kept crying and muttering thank you for her god, saying his name in between the words.

It was such a long time since someone was crying over him.

Without even realized it himself, a single drop of tear escaped from both of his eyes.

“Irene…” he whispered with such a raspy voice, “hurts,” he said.

“Oh my! I am so sorry Albus!” she rose her head from his chest. Her hands were quick to swap away her tears from her eyes with a clumsy motion.

She smiled at him after that, “Do you hurt anywhere else? Your hands? Your legs? Can you feel them? Do you have a headache? Could you feel your back?” she asked him all the questions with a single take of breath.

Albus only stared at her the whole time, couldn’t comprehend which fact struck him more, the fact that he felt agonizing pain all over his body or the fact that someone was there, waiting and caring for him.

“Wait, you must be thirsty, aren’t you?”,

“Don’t worry I’ll get you water. We have plenty of water. Water… yes… water” she was muttering again before got up and walked away from him.

Getting more aware of his surrounding, he could hear the sound of water dropped onto another surface of the water. He turned his head to the side and could see the stalagmites and rock walls as well as asymmetrical stone pillars tens of meters from where he lied. What made him frowned on his forehead was the fact that beneath whatever fabric he was lying on, it was actually a sand field. A very vast sand field.

Irene came back with a glass full of water.

She put her left arm under Albus’s head and help him to get up into a sitting position. His head felt way more horrible than before, as it was getting hit with a beater bat over and over again. Irene took the glass into Albus’s mouth and he instantly felt water run into his mouth. He never imagined how actually thirsty he was until the water touched his throat.

“More…” he whispered.

“Alright, I’ll get you some more” Irene answered.

He could see that she was running through the sand field into the big wide lake across the field. Albus looked at his surrounding once more and he thought everything was so bizarre. He was definitely inside a cave-like place, but the white sand field made him felt like he was on a beach. Before Albus could overthink more, Irene came back with another glass full of water.

She helped him once again to drink them. He could feel the effect of the water inside his body; his head felt lighter and his chest pain subdued for a bit.

“Thank you” Albus said to Irene, sincerely.

Irene shook her head, “No. Thank you” she whispered, “Thank you for waking up. Thank you for letting me know that I am not alone anymore”.

Albus looked at Irene’s eyes; they had tears ready to escape again.

“I’ve woken up, Irene. Don’t cry…” he whispered to her.

His voice was definitely better after drank those water.

She smiled and nodded her head, “Yes, you have”.

Albus smiled softly at her, “What is this place?” he asked her.

This time, she shook her head. “I have no single idea, Al. The only thing I can say for sure is that this place is under the black lake”.

His memories came back like a train. After they were sinking into the water, he coughed and lost consciousness. “What happened to us?” he asked her again.

“After you were out, we sank more and eventually hit the bottom of the lake” she started the story,

“But we actually didn’t hit it. We were kind of got passed through it. And the next thing I knew, we fell from there” she pointed out a high stony roof right above the big lake.

“We fell right into the water. And then I got us here”,

“Your head must be feeling horrible right now, isn’t it? Don’t try to say otherwise” she asked and warned Albus,

“I knew your head hit the bottom surface of that lake” she pointed out the lake in front of them, “It’s not that deep, just about my chest”,

“Although, I am a little bit relieved that I could stand in it. Otherwise, the two of us would be drowned to death by now”.

“Thank you, Irene” he said once again to her.

She smiled this time, which Albus knew was sincere, “We fell from a pretty high place and hit the water again then your head hit its floor, is there any part of you which feel pain other than our head?” she asked,

“I’ll try my best” she said to him.

He shook his head, “No, don’t worry. I could feel all of my limbs- if that’s what you worry about”.

Her eyes fell, “And your chest?”.

Albus fell silent for some seconds and replied, “Don’t think about it”.

To Albus’s surprise, she looked straight into his eyes; very irritated “HOW COULD I AM NOT?!” she yelled,

“I’ve been thinking constantly about it for the last six months!”,

“Every time I look at you, I always ask myself; ‘Is he alright?’, ‘is he in pain?’, ‘is he currently having a treatment?’”,

“I always want to ask those questions to yourself. I tried so hard to get close to you, but you always give me a cold shoulder”.

He looked at her and processed her words. This girl said she was constantly worrying over his health when she wasn’t had to. “You shouldn’t think about me, Irene” he said to her.

“I am sorry, but I just can’t do it” she replied, “In my mind, that memory of you chocked on your own blood that winter in Diagon Alley was still as fresh as the day it happened”,

“I just couldn’t forget it” she whispered.

Albus felt horrible, he might be the biggest jerk in the whole world in the last couple of months. “I am so sorry, Irene”,

“I am sorry that my condition had scared you. I didn’t mean of it” he apologized again.

“That’s not what I mean, Al” Irene objected.

 _‘I know that’s not what you mean. But I can’t- I can’t let you get closer to me. I will eventually hurt you, Irene’_ Albus could only think that words without saying them at loud.

“Nevertheless, I am so sorry” were the only words that could come out of his mouth. 

“By the way, where did you get this bed and blanket?” Albus changed the subject.

Now that he could sense his surroundings clearer, he finally could realize that all this time, he was lying in a seemingly thick bed with navy-blue bedding. The cool material of the black blanket gave him a sense of comfort and ease. As much as Albus believed Irene’s magical capabilities, he still wondered how she could get them.

To his surprise, she smiled. “You don’t recognize it? It’s your coat. The blanket is my cardigan”,

“I folded your coat and _Engorgio_ -ed it. The same goes for my cardigan” she explained.

_Brilliant_

“That’s really creative” he mumbled to her.

“Thank you” she replied.

“No-no. I should be the one that thanks to you” he said.

“You’re welcome” she said, “Your wand-” Irene showed his wand which lied in her hand,

“I used it to dry us up, made the bed and blanket, and conjured this” she explained and held the empty glass into the air.

“I don’t understand, why didn’t you use yours?” he entirely confused.

She took a breath, hold it for a while, and then exhaled it. “I lost it” she replied shortly.

“When we- emm- were sinking in the black lake, of course I got panicked, and seeing you coughed blood made me lost my mind. I tried to cast-”,

“No, actually I didn’t know what I would do at that time. I couldn’t think of anything, but my wand sensed danger and demanded me to do something. So, I took it out and before I even realized I lost my grip to it and both of us passed through the black lake’s floor and seconds after that the fell through the air and then got into the water _again_ ” she explained through monologue.

Albus learned one thing about his friend at that moment; she spoke fast when she was anxious.

“Thank you, Irene. You are really smart” he complimented her.

She nodded but got her eyes glued to the floor, feeling shy of his words to her.

Another thing he learned about her.

“You have a such beautiful wand” she changed the subject.

Albus looked at his wand, the light brown stick has been his most loyal companion since he could ever remember. When he got it from Ollivander four years ago, he was very happy and excited. He loved every bit of it; the seeds ornaments at the bottom were gorgeous, the length was just right, and most importantly, its core was a phoenix tail feather. Aside from the color of his eyes and the uncanny resemblances of his looks with his father, they also shared the same kind of wand core. Although he didn’t want to admit it, the memory of eleven years old him was thrilled with the idea of it.

And now everything was much more complicated than when he was eleven years old.

“Yes, it is indeed beautiful” he replied, “Cherry tree, eleven inches, phoenix feather, sturdy”.

“It made of a cherry tree?!” Irene exclaimed, “Woah”.

Albus frowned, “What’s with the reaction?” he asked.

She looked at him and then suddenly her face looked sad, “Back in my homeland, it’s such an honor and prestige to get a wand made of the cherry blossom tree. Not many people manage to get chosen by _it_ ”.

“Really?”.

“Yes. Cherry Blossom- or Sakura is held in such a high regard in our culture”.

“May I ask why?” Albus curiously asked.

“Hmm, how to say this? It’s the symbol- a metaphor of a human’s existence. It blooms beautifully but its life and wonder are such a short while. Just like human’s mortal life. After a tough winter, where everything is miserable and cold, it will bloom once again. Bringing the wonder, colors, and beauty once again to this world”,

“The monks say that it is the symbol of life, death, and rebirth altogether. That’s why it’s really astonishing”,

“And the wizards and witch who get the wand made of it are dubbed as specials”.

Albus was quite sometime after that. It wasn’t that he didn’t respect and believe any of it. But if something in his life had taught him, it was the things that one believed too good to be true, were often being untrue and wouldn’t happen.

“That’s fascinating” he replied, “Is your wand made of it as well?”.

Irene shook her head, “Mine was made of the wisteria tree” she answered.

“That’s a flower tree as well,” Albus said.

“Yes, it is” she replied, “And it’s gorgeous. But there isn’t any literal meaning to it.”,

“Some people say that it’s a symbol of nobility, or love, or purity, or long life and immortality. For me, I like to say that it’s a symbol of endurance- for its long life. But I-”,

Albus looked at her and saw her hugged herself, knees were folded and the head was buried between her arms. He started to hear the sound of a low sobbing. Irene was crying again, and he didn’t know what to do or said. He was never a people’s pleaser or able to bring comfort to anyone, even Scorpius! 

But before Albus could even think on how to calm her down, she spoke again amidst her tears running down her face, “It’s been six months since I came here, I feel homesick all the time, I hate the traces system, I don’t like the foods, people are too obsessed with quidditch, and now I got myself into this stupid place!”,

“I was too afraid to check around this place and the only thing I could do was crying!” she said between her sobs,

“I don’t have any sort of endurance. I am a coward and loser” she ended her words.

The silence fell to both of them; Irene was busy fighting other tears that about to come out while Albus was busy thinking the words he should say to her. He never imagined that this situation would happen. The everyday _‘new girl’_ Irene was completely different from Irene who was sitting in front of him now. The incredibly smart, teacher's new favorite/ Rose’s rival, Irene wasn’t there at the moment. The girl that every one of his classmate's thought was having a crush on him wasn’t there as well.

In front of him, was the girl that pent up every one of her emotions since forever and forced to be in a situation that deeply frustrating her.

She reminded him of himself, at the beginning of this fourth-year.

“You dragged me from the middle of the lake, made a bed and blanket, and nursing me until I wake up. And you did all those things alone even though you scared so very much of this place. For me, that’s not cowardly- that’s bravery” he said to her,

“And now that I already wake up, you don’t have to do everything alone anymore”.

Irene rose her head up and looked straight into Albus’s eyes. He hoped she found that sincerity and determination that he put on those words.

They gather their strength and began to explore the place. There wasn’t much they could found except a narrow path between the stone pillars that led them to the back of the rocky stalagmites. It surprised them that there was a river flowing, with very crystal-clear water- both of them could look into the riverbed. And just like the lake and its side, the river floor was filled with white sand.

Albus hadn’t sure whether Irene thought about it or not; there were a lot of greens inside the river, but there wasn’t a single fish that was swimming in it.

“Should we follow the river or going against it?” Irene asked.

“Let’s go follow it first and see if there is a way out of it” Albus answered.

They didn’t have to walk on the slippery soil of the riverside for long. To their horror, it ended in the form of a massive tall wall. The water was going past the hole on the bottom part of the wall. There was no way to know where the river led to, except they dove into the water and let the stream carried them through it.

“Let’s check the other way” Albus said.

They walked back and passed the way of the narrow path. Their discovery on this side was worse; the water was actually coming from the underground. The water spring came out like a great fountain and then flowing through its path, creating the river. 

“Should we be going back?” Irene asked.

“Let’s come back to the lakeside” he suggested.

And if they couldn’t figure out how to get out of this place soon, Albus hoped that those greens in the river were edible.

They sat on his coat-bed and thinking about what the thing they should do.

“We couldn’t risk just dive through the downstream” Irene said, “Who knows where it led? It could be worse. And more importantly, could you perform the bubble-head charm?” she asked Albus.

“No-” Albus replied, “Not yet” he added.

“Well, I could. But I lost my wand and using yours isn’t an option” she said, “It doesn’t listen to me well”.

Albus smirked, “Of course it isn’t. It doesn’t even listen to me _that_ well”.

Irene smiled, “Yeah, sturdy”.

“More importantly, I don’t want us to go a separate way. We stick around together till the end” Albus said. 

She looked at him for brief seconds and quickly turned her head, “Y-yeah” she said, “we sh- should always be together. Of course!”

He stared at her confusingly, _‘Did I say something wrong?’_ he thought.

“What about blowing off the roof?” Albus asked, “Then you perform the bubble-head charm on both of us”.

“This place would be crumbling down, Albus” Irene said with full of emphasis in each word.

“I know. This place would be filled with water but we could breathe underwater with the charm, right?”,

“After that, we could just go up into the surface and swim” he suggested.

Irene was quite for some time, “Could a person who can’t swim be able to dive?” she genuinely asked.

Another lesson to remember, Irene couldn’t swim- obviously.

“Well, I will just carry you on my back or something. Then I will cast _Ascendio_ to bring both of us to the surface and swim us both to the side. That way we didn’t have to rely on the bubble-head charm for too long”.

“Tha- that sounds like a plan” Irene agreed.

“Right” he replied.

They both stood up and Albus shrank their coat and cardigan into their original size. He gave the cardigan to Irene and wore his coat.

“Ready?” he asked Irene.

She took a breath and exhaled, “Ready” she replied shortly.

Albus pointed his wand into the roof right above the center of the lake, “ _BOMBARDA MAXIMA_!” he yelled.

The white light coming out of his wand and got right on the stalactite's roof. 

And nothing.

Nothing happened.

Albus was silent after that, wondering why it didn’t work.

“Try again Al” Irene said.

“Right”,

“ _BOMBARDA MAXIMA_!” he yelled once again.

The spell coming out of his wand and touched the stalactites, but once again- nothing happened.

Without saying anything, Albus performed the incantation again and again,

“ _BOMBARDA MAXIMA_!”

“ _BOMBARDA MAXIMA_!”

“ _BOMBARDA MAXIMA_!”

Nothing happened to it.

It frustrated Albus as to why they didn’t work. The spell came out right, but they left no effect. He refused to believe that he was failed to perform a spell as simple as,

“ _BOMBARDA MAXIMA_!”

Still, nothing happened.

Did he just completely fail at performing the explosion spell?

_“CONFRINGO!”_

The fiery-orange light came out of his wand and hit the target.

Still, nothing happened.

He began to felt angry with himself and cast the blasting curse over and over again.

 _“CONFRINGO!”_ He yelled for the four times and about to casted for the five times.

“Al, stop!” Irene said.

But Albus was too absorbed into casting the spell, wanted to prove to himself that he absolutely could do it.

_“CONFRINGO!”_

“ _BOMBARDA MAXIMA_!”

He was about to move his hand again, but Irene caught it. She stood in front of him, held his right hand in both of her palms. Albus looked straight to her eyes; blacks met green. Irene slowly shook her head,

“Calm down, Albus” she whispered, “It’s not on you” she assured him.

The only thing he could do was biting his lips and turned his head away from her.

\--

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope it's not too cheesy >.<.   
> See you in the next chapter.


	16. Albus: An Honest Conversation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “And what are you, exactly? A memory? A ghost?” he asked.
> 
> ‘Magic’ she answered with a smile on her face.
> 
> “Magic…” he whispered, “And you live inside the castle- the whole time?”.
> 
> ‘They told me I shouldn’t leave’ she said, ‘They were cruel’ she whispered.
> 
> He looked at her and gulped, “Who are they?” he asked.
> 
> ‘The founders’ she shortly answered.

**Albus**

\--

They were sitting down on the sand field side by side, both were quiet and tried to calm themselves down. The fact that there wasn’t any way out of that place began to sink into Albus’s mind. What kind of place is this? Why magic didn’t work toward its wall? Or was it his magic that was too weak? And if they couldn’t find any possibilities of getting out from that place-

He sighed heavily. The idea of dying in a strange foreign place, starving, and cold, wasn’t the thing he ever imagined. Being dead because of losing a magic duel sounded cool, dead because of caught up in war was sure heroic and patriotic, dead because of old age sounded fulfilling, but dead because he was trapped in a place beneath his own school- helpless until the end didn’t sound any good at all. Inside his heart, Albus always hoped that at least he wasn’t a failure in something. Even if was only one single thing he good at- he wanted to fight for it. But it seemed that being a loser was the only thing he was good at. Why?! Even until the end, he had to be so miserable!

Albus turned his head toward his friend who sat quietly beside him. Irene continuously pressing her lips together fought the tears that always about to come out of her eyes all the time. He knew that she was terrified beyond her comfort zone and he had to do something about it.

“Irene” he called her.

She turned her head to Albus, “Yes?’ she replied,

“How long do you think we’ve been in here?” he asked.

Irene’s forehead frowned, “Whatever hour after six in the morning” she answered.

“You sound so sure” Albus said.

His friend nodded, “Well, that’s what my internal clock says”,

“Everyone might be having their breakfast now” she sighed.

“Yeah” he replied, “I guess so”. Judging from her tone, Albus could know that Irene also thought about how they’ll survive until they could find a way out-or someone found and got them out. There was nothing except water here. He just hoped that at least they could drink it without weird magic affected them.

“What do you think is the menu today?” Irene asked him, in which he frowned his forehead upon hearing it.

“It’s Monday, so I think it would be toast, bacon, and sunny side up- no cereal”,

Albus was about to say something when she cut him, “- And no pumpkin juice. It’s going to be either milk and tea or milk and lemon juice” she said.

He decided to shut his mouth, as he was sure that she didn’t want to actually start a conversation with him. And so, he listened to her monologue attentively.

“I don’t like it when they make the toast too crunchy, because by then I wouldn’t feel my stomach full after eating them. And I always find it hilarious that Estelle likes to cut her bacon into smaller pieces and make sandwiches with her toasts that are already covered with butter and jam- the taste is funny. For me, the salty and the sweets food have to be eaten in a separate way. As for breakfast, I don’t do sweet stuff. They make me sleepy during classes”.

Albus counted to three and ready to say something when Irene sighed and spoke again, “I wonder what everyone is doing right now” she said, “Do you think they realize that we are missing?” she asked.

He didn’t answer right away to see if she wanted to say something again.

When about ten seconds passed and she kept starring at him quietly, he finally opened his mouth.

“I am sure they do” he assured her, “Maybe the school already informed our family as well” he said.

Irene sighed, “I just hope my mom had finished her meal before she gets the news. She tends to not eat anything when she is panicking” she said,

“There was one time when my dad had an accident when trying out the brand-new broomstick and she didn’t move from my father’s hospital bed for two days. My house elf, Kiki had to-” she stopped her words out of sudden.

And then she looked at him again with her eyes wide opened, “KIKI!” she suddenly yelled.

She suddenly stood up, “KIKI!” she yelled again.

Albus eyed him confusingly, trying to comprehend what exactly she was doing. “Irene” he called her.

She looked around, looking terribly confused and terrified. He never considered how much his friend actually panicked and afraid until that very moment. For Albus, it wasn’t his first tragedy- nor the second or the third. It sure terrified him, but then he had far more terrible experiences.

He got up and put his hand on one of Irene’s shoulder, “You are the one who said to me that we should calm ourselves down” he said.

She nodded, “I just called my house-elf” she said, “There was a slight moment of hope for me”.

He nodded as well, understood the intention of her action. “We couldn’t blow this place up and a creature as strong as house-elf wouldn’t get into here” he concluded.

“Meaning?” she asked.

“I have no idea yet” he admitted, “But let’s find as many clues as we could get”.

Irene nodded and both of them sat down on the sand once again.

“We don’t know how long we would get stuck in here” Irene said, “Get any idea how we would try to survive?”.

He frowned his forehead, “How long do you think a human body could survive with only water?”.

“That is also the only thing I could think about” she replied, “I don’t’ know- five days probably”.

“Then let’s try our best within those five days” Albus said, “Find as many clues and possibilities as we could”.

She gulped, “Do you think we could do this?”.

“I honestly don’t know” he admitted, “But I refuse to just give up” he said to her seriously.

They searched through all of the areas to find something that might lead them to get out of the place. But so far, the only thing that seemed to get in and out was the river in the back of the stalagmites wall. Irene spent the time trying various spells with his wand, hoping to find a powerful enough spell to do something to the wall. Albus knew that he somehow had a connection to his wand that made it the only answer to him with its maximum power. But he didn’t realize it until he watched Irene used it.

The wand chose its wizard, his father once said to him.

Albus looked at Irene who just fired her eight Incendio to the wall. And of course, nothing happened, as if the wall was spell proof or something. The more he was looking at the situation, the more he somehow felt that everything about this place was familiar to him. It’s not about how the place looked like, but how it sensed. Looking up at the ceiling, it looked like a dome to him. His voice was echoing through the air every time he spoke. He then looked around the surrounding walls and imagined the shape of the place.

“Irene” he called his friend,

“Yeah?”.

“Do you think that this place shaped like a- ” he tried to find the right word,

“- cage?”.

“A cage?” Irene asked confusedly.

“Yeah- from the outer view. The ceiling is a dome and the walls look pretty round for me” he said while moving his hand to shape an imaginary cylinder.

She looked around the place and tilted her head up to the roof. “I never thought about that at all. The stalactites completely cover the dome” she said, “How could you even know that?”.

Albus looked at her and tilted his head. How did he know that its roof was a dome?

Wait… How did he know that?

He looked up to the roof that was full of stalactites. Albus was a hundred percent sure that wasn’t what it looked like some seconds ago. What he saw was a stony roof, as black as the wall itself. But how could it change into something that he didn’t see before?

“Albus” Irene called him, “Are you okay?” she asked him.

“Yeah! Yeah, of course!” he replied quickly.

Irene sat down in front of him and looked at him, looking something within his eyes that was a lie. But he made sure to look back at her and assured her that it was nothing to think about.

“Well, if you say so” she said to him,

“If your words are true, I think it makes sense”.

“Why?” Albus asked.

“If this place is some sort of a- cage, or should I say a prison, it makes sense. Also, I think it’s not that our spells don’t affect the wall. I think the wall itself might absorb them” Irene said.

“Our spell? Being absorbed into the wall?”

“It’s just a guess though” she said, “I couldn’t think any other explanation besides that” Irene sighed and got her head down.

Albus nodded, “At least you could think of something. I haven’t even thought about any possibilities at all” he replied.

“Don’t be so hard on yourself, Al. You’ve just woken up not too long ago”.

“Thank you” he whispered.

Kriuukk Kriuuukkkk

Silent fell between them. Their stomach grumbled and echoed through the air. They looked at each other and sighed heavily. The two of them got up from the sand field and walked toward the lakeside.

“Do you think it’s safe?” Irene asked him.

“We have no other choice” Albus replied.

She nodded and gathered her arm to take the water into her palm. Her hands stopped midair- seemingly hesitant while watching the water slipping through her fingers. And finally, she sipped the water and swallowed it. Albus didn’t wait for her to say something about the water and did the same thing as her. The water felt really fresh within his mouth. His eyes went wide upon the realization that maybe, it was the freshest water he had ever been drunk for his entire life.

His eyes met Irene’s and her eyes told him the same thing he thought, “Should we just keep drinking or wait to see if it did something bad to our body?” he asked her.

“Previously, I wanted to wait” she said, “But now all I want to do is keep drinking it. I am really thirsty”.

“Me too” Albus whispered.

And so, the two of them decided to gather their own palm and keep drinking the lake water until their thirst was healed.

No one knew for sure what time it was, but Albus felt his eyes were getting really heavy. He looked at Irene and she seemed sleepy as well. She rubbed her eyes and blinking quickly over and over again. After fought so hard, Albus yawned soundly and Irene instantly looked in his direction.

“Do you feel sleepy as well?” she asked.

He yawned again while nodding his head, “I’ve done too many magic for one day. I feel like I am drained” he replied,

“Yeah, me too” Irene replied.

“What time do you think it is?” he asked.

“No idea” she said while yawning, “If it were according to my internal clock, I think it’s about ten o’clock”.

 _It couldn’t be right_ he thought.

He watched as Irene threw herself on his gigantic folded jacket which the deemed as a bed and closed her eyes, “Night Al” she whispered quietly and instantly slept.

Albus fought his sleepiness and tried his best to stay awake. He felt something was wrong about it. Was it the water? Was it because they both were tired? Was it because their energy was drained for using too much magic? Was it because their body was lack of needed nutrition?

How many hours since they last eat? His stomach grumbled just by thinking about it.

He had a strong thought that if he slept at that very time, both of them would start to lose a sense of time- which was really dangerous. Albus learned all of that the hard way and it seemed that he would learn something the hard way again.

All the overthinking made him felt sleepy even more and before he even realized it, his feet were moving toward the bed and he was lying beside Irene who very much asleep at this point. All it took was a couple of breaths before he finally succumbed to his sleep.

_‘Albus!’_

A voice tickling his ears.

So enchanting

So angelic

So familiar

 _‘Albus’_ , it called his name again.

He couldn’t help but opened his eyes. Turned his head, he saw Irene was still peacefully sleeping.

 _‘Albus, come here’_ , said the voice again.

The voice that called him was so beautiful, he couldn’t help but doing what it said. He got out of the bed and walked toward where it was. His feet felt like they were moving on their own, his heart was so excited about it, and his head thought nothing of it. Albus was getting closer and closer to the lake, feeling the wet sand under his feet. Finally, his body reached the big lake, and slowly, he moved forward into the water.

It’s getting deeper and his body was gradually soaked. But he didn’t stop, he went forward and in no time, all of his body was within the water. Without moving his body on his own command, he felt that he was floating frontward.

And then, he heard it again. The familiar hymn.

He couldn’t think about anything. But his body knew that it wanted to hear that hymn over and over again. It’s like a drug to his own body, making it happy without knowing why.

In the moment of bliss, he saw a familiar grand pavilion.

And someone was floating in it.

The familiar sight with the familiar figure.

The hymn stopped and she turned her body toward him.

 _‘Welcome, Albus’_ the angelic voice said.

She lifted both of her hands, inviting him to come to her. His body moved on its own, while his head couldn’t even think about any single rejection of it. The closer he got to the figure, the better his body felt, and the blurrier his head to ever thought about anything.

Her blue hair was so beautiful, her face was so gorgeous, and her voice was so angelic.

 _‘I am glad you finally here’_ she said,

_‘I’ve been waiting for so long’._

_‘I am sorry’_ he replied to her.

She shook her head and brought both of their hands entwined to each other, _‘It doesn’t matter anymore’_ she said.

She looked at Albus's eyes; purples met greens. Everything about her was so familiar to him, so inviting, and so comforting. He unconsciously moved his right hand and placed it on her cheek. She smiled at him, so lovingly that it made him smiled at her.

_‘Just a little more, Albus. We’ll be together soon and you’ll be okay again’,_

_‘All the pain will go away’_ she said to him.

He nodded and brought his hands together to embrace her. Her body felt so brittle in his arms like it would break away once he released her.

“Albus!”, another voice called him

The girl in his embrace moved her hands from his back to his ears, closing them from the voice that called him.

“Albus!”, the voice called him again.

 _‘Stop!’_ Albus screamed while closing his eyes tightly. He didn’t want to go anymore, he wanted to stay here!

“Albus!”

The water around him began to stir and shake. He heard rumbling sounds from everywhere and screamed for them to stop over and over again. Albus tightened his embrace toward the girl, forced with all his might to keep holding her and stay in eternal bliss.

“Albus!” the voice upset him again.

And then everything scattered to pieces, the water was no longer there, the girl was longer existing, and the reality came back to him. When he opened his eyes, he saw a pair of black orbs staring back at him, a frowned brow, and a familiar face.

“Irene” Albus whispered.

“Oh! Kami-sama, thank you!” she exclaimed, “Albus, are you okay?” she asked him.

Albus kept staring at her. The image of everything from before was still vividly attached to his mind. The lake, the pavilion, the girl, the voice, the blue hair, the purple eyes, the pale skin- everything. And then, his other part of his brain began to work and wonder.

_What was that?_

_It felt so real!_

_It was so wonderfully real!_

_It was so terrifyingly real!_

And then, something surfaced- a tremendous amount of pain. He clutched his chest and got up.

“Al!” Irene’s voice called him,

He didn’t even think anything anymore as the only thing he felt was a pain. Albus crunched beside the bed and coughed the blood out of his chest into the sand. Fe felt a hand on his back and patted it rather roughly. The cough was lasting forever for him before he felt that the air could enter his lungs and finally could breathe again.

Albus rose his head and meet Irene’s worried and terrified face. She sighed and smiled sadly,

“Feel better already?” she asked him, tears were ready to come out of her eyes.

He nodded and turned his head away from her eyes.

“I’ll get you some water” she said and got up, running toward the lake.

 _‘The lake…’_ Albus thought.

Irene helped him to drink the water and the two of them sat on the sand,

“Thank you” Albus murmured.

She shook her head, “No problem” she said.

Silent fell as both of them didn’t want to say anything to each other anymore. Albus felt so guilty for Irene that she had to watch his episode again. He began to think that it would happen quite often now as he didn’t have his medicines. His chest felt so tight and painful, but he couldn’t show it to her too much. He couldn’t appear to be weak in this kind of time. They were in a serious situation right now, and no one should be sick.

“I am sorry” Albus apologized to her.

“You don’t have to” she said.

Silent fell again.

He felt that Irene wanted to say something more but restrained in doing so.

“You wake me up, weren’t you?” he asked her.

Irene smiled a little and nodded. “I want to say something to you” she said.

“Just say it, then” he replied.

She got up and walked toward the bed, “When I sleep, I felt something was bothering me” she said, “Like big logs placed under my head. Then I woke up and looking for what are those things”,

“Turned out, there are some big BIG pieces of stuff under my head” she crunched and unfolded the giant fabric in both of her hands. It showed an enormous pocket of his jackets, filled with something that looks like some giant woods inside.

And it came to him.

“The valerian roots!” he exclaimed.

Irene nodded and Albus got up from his place, walked toward the bed. They retrieved the massive things from the pocket with both of their hands. There were three of them, just like how much he picked up that afternoon before the disaster happened.

“I can’t believe it” he said with a smile on his face.

Irene smiled as well, “Are they edible?” she asked him.

“Of course, they are” he replied, “Taste like yams while mint flavor” he said.

“Well, it’s better than nothing isn’t it?” she asked.

“Yes. It much better” he whispered.

And that was how they had at least probably a week's worth of food to survive. They began a fire with a small portion of them and grilled the other portion. The taste was so-so, it’s not delicious and not horrible either. But of course, it was far better than just water for the rest of their time here.

Irene visibly starving, judging by the way she ate her grilled valerian root. And as he ate his own, his thought wandered to another thing. The lake, the pavilion, and the girl. He already got a real idea that this place was indeed connected to the horrible nightmares he constantly got for the last five months.

Hours passed with boredom and constant efforts to find any clue for the two of them to get out of the place. Their internal clock told them to sleep again and Irene wasted no time to throw herself on the bed. She slept a moment later and Albus made sure that she truly fast asleep.

After that, he walked toward the lake and closed his eyes,

“Come to me, please” he whispered.

The lake’s water shone dimly before a figure immerged from inside it. The familiar figure was everything like he ever remembered. Blue hair, pale skin, purple eyes, with no article covering her body. She was standing on the water surface, with a dim silvery glow surrounding her. Everything about her was gorgeous and her face was so mesmerizing. There was something about her that gratifying him toward her. Like it was something so natural for him to do so.

‘Hello again, Albus’ the angelic voice chimed.

He nodded, not sure what to say to her. Strangely, he didn’t feel like he was afraid of her. Albus could feel that she wasn’t dangerous in any way.

“Who are you?” he asked.

She smiled at him, _‘You know my name. It was inside your head’_ she replied.

“Dione” he said unconsciously.

It terrified him. How could he know about it?

“You’ve been inside my head for so long. Why?” he asked.

 _‘Because I am trying to help you, Albus’_ she replied, _‘You are in pain, aren’t you?’._

“I am” he confessed, “Why?” he asked again.

 _‘Because we belong together, Al. I am yours and you’re mine’_ she said.

Albus frowned his forehead, “What is that mean?”.

 _‘It is exactly what it means’_ she replied.

“Why?” he asked again.

 _‘Because we had wonderful memories together a long time ago’_ she replied.

“That couldn’t be true. We’ve never met before” he said to her.

She shook her head, _‘Your memories haven’t returned to you now. But you will remember all of them one day’_ she said.

“Why are you so sure?” he asked.

Everything about it started to terrify him even more. He knew she wasn’t dangerous. But something about everything she said was the opposite. What the hell did she mean? He tried with all of his might to stay calm and collected. He had to know everything about the situation first before frantically panicked.

She smiled lovingly, _‘You’ve remembered to visit my chamber’_ she said.

It struck him like a lightning bolt.

_Of course…_

_‘I’ve been waiting for so long, Albus’_ she said.

He gulped, “How long?” he asked her. 

_‘Too long’_ she replied.

“I haven’t remembered how the two of us meet in the first place. Care to tell me?” he asked her.

Her smile was so wide, it stirred something inside him- happiness.

 _‘Your time travel stranded you in another timeline, where I am still able to roam freely in the castle. And you found me, and we loved each other for so long’_ she said,

 _‘But you had to come back to the future again. I stay and waiting for you to come to me as you had promised me. And you do!’_ she said happily.

He closed his eyes. Of course, of course, it didn’t as simple as he thought it would.

“But I was only jumping fifty years back” he whispered, “And we fixed it, as it should be”.

 _‘All of you fixed your father's fate. And if only they didn’t do it, we would still together in the past by now’_ she replied,

 _‘Oh Albus, I am sorry you didn’t remember it’_ she said with sadness, _‘Our time together is so wonderful Al. Both of us were so happy’._

_My father’s fate…_

_My father’s fate…_

_ONLY my father’s fate…_

One messed up time and fixed one thing didn’t mean it fixed another. How many? How many things were actually changed by his mishap? How many souls were thrown into another time having another life? How many lost their existence? How many were dead? How many were living now and shouldn’t be? His breath was raging by thinking about it. His enormous ego caused doom for everyone- and apparently for himself. What kind of life he had in different timelines? How could he be thrown to another time without he even realized it?

“I see” he whispered,

“So, you live through all of the time you wait for me?” he asked,

She nodded.

He knew she wasn’t a human in any way possible. No, she was something else.

“And what are you, exactly? A memory? A ghost?” he asked.

 _‘Magic’_ she answered with a smile on her face.

“Magic…” he whispered, “And you live inside the castle- the whole time?”.

 _‘They told me I shouldn’t leave’_ she said, _‘They were cruel’_ she whispered.

He looked at her and gulped, “Who are they?” he asked.

 _‘The founders’_ she shortly answered.

He closed his eyes tightly. And after a couple of breaths, he opened his eyes once again. A question appeared inside his head in an instant.

“I am sick because of it, isn’t it?” he asked, “Because I was jumping around different times”.

She nodded, _‘In this time’_ she said.

_In this time…_

_In this time…_

_In this time…_

_ONLY in this time…_

_Okay, I get it…_

“Do you know I have a friend named Scorpius?” he asked.

She nodded, _‘Scorpius Malfoy’._

“Yes, Scorpius Malfoy” he confirmed, “Is he also sick like me as well?” he asked again.

She shook her head.

“Good…”,

“There’s nothing wrong with him, right?” he confirmed.

She shook her head again.

He frowned his forehead, “Then, what happened to him?”.

 _‘He wasn’t supposed to be alive, in this time’_ she replied.

Albus closed his eyes.

He felt like he wanted to cry in an instant.

\--

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing this story turns out, took a lot of time and energy LoL.   
> I edited this chapter four times in the fear that I would mess up the next title of the series in I mess up now.  
> I was really happy that I could make it shorter than usual.  
> Thank you for reading :)


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